Pirates’ goal was scored by wingback Paseka Mako in the third minute, heaping more pressure on the strikers in the process.
Johannesburg – Orlando Pirates’ coach Jose Riveiro has backed his misfiring strikers, saying every player on the pitch has a role to play in scoring goals.
On Tuesday night, Pirates climbed to the top of the league standings after they beat Marumo Gallants 1-0 at the Orlando Stadium.
Pirates’ goal was scored by wingback Paseka Mako in the third minute, heaping more pressure on the strikers in the process.
In four goals that the Bucs have scored in six league matches this season, Bienvenu Eva Nga remains the only striker that has scored for them.
The stocky Cameroonian marksman found the back of the net once during his debut against Swallows FC in the opening game of the season.
His peers Kwame Peprah and Zakhele Lepasa, who played a huge role in the goal against Marumo, have not opened their accounts.
“Nowadays, in football, the roles are not as simple as in the past perhaps,” Riveiro said. “The role of the striker is more than scoring goals.
“Usually, they score goals because they are closer to the goals, it’s in their nature and we signed them because we know that they’ll score.
“But we have to evaluate the performance of our strikers in many different aspects – and not just the final product [which is scoring goals].
“In the way we play, scoring goals is the responsibility of the striker, No. 10 and wing-backs as you saw today Mako scored. Last time it was Deon [Hotto].
“We have to share the responsibility. We can’t put pressure on our strikers to score in every game because they are doing a lot of other things.”
Pirates’ players will turn their focus to the MTN8 quarter-final where they’ll visit Royal AM at the Chatsworth Stadium on Saturday evening.
The Bucs have already beaten Thwihli Thwahla 1-0 in the league this season. But they’ll have to be sharp in front of goal to reach the MTN8 semi-final.
