NEWS: ‘Sundowns are a points machine, we can’t compete,’ Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro admits Rulani Mokwena’s team is too good

Rulani Mokwena’s Masandawana have been an unshakable and immovable force in the league where they are almost certain to claim a seventh title on the spin.

Pirates, meanwhile, are third on the PSL log, sitting behind Steve Barker’s Stellenbosch FC while Sekhukhune United are hot on their heels as the race for the Caf Champions League and Caf Confederation Cup intensifies.

The runners-up of the DStv Premiership earn a place in next season’s Champions League while the winners of the Nedbank Cup and third-place finisher in the league qualify for the Confederation Cup.

Pirates can finish on a maximum of 58 points if they win all of their games, improving on last season’s tally. However, that too won’t be enough to catch Masandawana, who are currently cruising on 52 points and are without blemish.

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“We finished last season with 54 points and you usually need 60 points to win the title in South Africa, but we are competing with a points machine, they don’t lose, it is difficult,” Riveiro lamented.

“We are trying but it is difficult to get close, for many reasons but we are getting there. I don’t know where we are going to finish this season but we are probably going to pass that number,” he added.

Pirates’s next league game is against AmaZulu – the same opponent that they will meet in the Nedbank Cup this weekend at the Moses Mabhida Stadium.

Riveiro hopes that Pirates’ good run at this venue will continue as they have not lost away to Usuthu in over a decade.

“It is true that Durban is a good space for us, we have beautiful memories at the Moses Mabhida Stadium, we won our first trophy together as a team and we had the opportunity to lift another final (2024 MTN8) this season.

“We hope to find ourselves in another final and for us to make that possible, we will have to play a beautiful game there against AmaZulu,” said Riveiro.