Orlando Pirates have announced José Riverio as a new head coach.One might have expected Benni McCarthy or Mandla Ncikazi to get the coveted position and to the disappointment of others neither of them were appointed.José is a great coach and he should be given time like the others before him. Since this is an appointment that caught everyone & everything by suprise . I have decided to examine the task at hand and give my thoughts on how I see him getting on.
THE SITUATION
He arrives when Pirates are at a weird situation and people seem to underestimate how huge the task at hand. Having reached the finals of the CAF Confederations Cup and losing on penalties to RSC Berkane but performing poor domestically finishing 6th in the league and not qualifying for any continental football.I will explain later on how this could be a blessing in disguise.Pirates find themselves in a precarious situation. With the squad ,a mixture of different playing styles and the fact that arrivals & exits happened without his consent.It will be interesting to see how he enforces his style of play.There are bright prospects at the club and with the very best players not only at the club but in the league returning to full fitness in Vincent Pule & Thembinkosi Lorch,it will be interesting to see how integral they are to his plans .With some seasoned pros and great squad players part of the exit list, replacements will be crucial. The striker situation also leaves a lot of doubt on who he will keep since all the strikers are great on their own watch. It will be interesting to see how he gets on and how close he gets on challenging Mamelodi Sundowns.
WHO IS HE?
Having predominantly spent most of his time as an assistant coach and has 1 senior coaching job to date. It comes as no surprise fans know little about him. He has no major trophies as a head coach but has received plaudits for his tactical nuance with former side FC Inter handpicking him for his technical,tactical,fast paced football. He plays a dynamic 3-4-3/3-4-2-1 with flying wing-backs and dynamic no.10's which I will consider a modern approach the league desperately lacks. Fans should expect The Sea Robbers to be marginally better defensively and very dangerous on the transition. Which is something most of the players are used to, judging from Josef Zinnbauer's Tenure.
My Personal View
Expectations will be high as usual. His minimal coaching experience and the fact that most of the squad has been underperfoming for the past seasons gives me no hope. Also the fact the best players at the club are injury-prone and there is no good cover does not help his cause. How he manages the huge ego's will determine his success but this will be easier since he managed a team as big as Inter.
Thembinkosi Lorch(top) keeping him fit will be crucial for Pirates achieving success
Since the team has no continental football , this might work in his favor by giving him better chances of resting his stars.His time at FC Inter does give us a glimpse of his management skills. He managed to enforce his style of play and his prefered system, a 3-4-3. Does the same system suit the squad ,remains to be seen.
This will be a great appointment for the league since Mamelodi Sundowns needs challengers. In my opinion, he will be in the hot race for 2nd alongside bitter rivals Kaizer Chiefs, Eric Tinkler's Cape Town City and Money loaded Royal A.M. I see him challenging Sundowns the season after this one and he will eventually leave in the 24/25 season because he claimed that he does not last more than 3 years at a club which in turn will leave Pirates on the same position he found it.
How do you see him doing ? Is he another Plumber or the second coming of Christ ?
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