Focus is not on early goal, says Bucs skipper

Orlando Pirates captain Innocent Maela has reiterated that the team are not obsessing about scoring an early goal against Jwaneng Galaxy at Orlando Stadium on Friday (7.30pm).

Pirates and Jwaneng face off in the second leg of the CAF Champions League second preliminary phase. Jwaneng, who are the reigning league champions of Botswana, won the away leg 1-0 two weeks ago.

“When you play a match, you play for 90 minutes, right? So, if you score early, it’s good. But if you score before halftime or just after, it’s also good, as long as you put the ball in the back of the net,” Maela said during a media conference on Thursday.

“We are not going into matches thinking to score within the first 10 minutes. We don’t go with that idea. We just need to go out there and execute the plan and we believe the goal will come eventually.”

The Sea Robbers’ skipper dismissed the notion, held by some, that Pirates were complacent in the first leg in Botswana, hence Jwaneng stunned them.

“We don’t speak about complacency, we don’t have that in our club,” he insisted.

“Were we surprised [to be beaten by Jwaneng in the first leg]? Not at all because it’ sa Champions League match. We expected a tough match, a very competitive match and a very tactical match and that’s what we got.”

Maela underlined Pirates’ dream of securing a spot in the group stages of the Champions League as they aim to gauge their credentials against the continent’s best. “To find ourselves in the group stages of the Champions League will mean everything, so that we’ll be able to compete against the best the continent has to offer. That’s what we want, that’s our ambition as a group.”

Pirates coach Jose Riveiro said: “It’s a home game against a good team, who are already leading 1-0. It’s a challenge but we love challenges. This one is an opportunity to prove that even in difficult circumstances we can make it, we can be our best version.”