New Orlando Pirates Coach Jose Riveiro Says That He Was Not Good Enough to Play Football as a Professional

• Orlando Pirates' newly appointed coach Jose Riveiro has stated that he was never good enough to become a professional player
• The Spaniard said that this realisation made him determined to become a student of the game instead, leading to him become a coach
• His appointment to man the Buccaneers' ship was met with hesitation and skepticism considering his lack of a convincing track record

Realising that he was never good enough to become a professional football player, new Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro said that this motivated him to instead become a coach.

The 46-year-old Spaniard was announced by the Buccaneers as the man to steer the ship last Saturday, with his appointment surprising many Orlando Pirates supporters who had never heard of him.

According to Hollywoodbets, Riveiro joined the club from Finnish team FC Inter Turku, having previously worked as an assistant coach with HJK Helsinki, PK-35 and FC Honka. DispatchLIVE reported that he guided FC Inter to runners-up finishes in 2019 and 2020, while they finished in third place in 2021.

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He said in a 2019 interview in Finnish paper Ilta-Sanomat:

“[My team] Gran Pena played in the Spanish third level, which is roughly the number one in Finland. I realised I wasn’t going to be good, no matter how much work I did. “I was always interested in the game.

"At the age of 14, I started travelling with my team’s coach to Porto [in Portugal] to see the Champions League. I also worked as a journalist for [Spanish weekly sports magazine] Don Balon, so I got into interviews and read a lot about football.”

Orlando Pirates co-coach Mandla Ncikazi reportedly surprised by Jose Riveiro's announcement as the new boss

Mandla Ncikazi was reported to have been surprised by the arrival of Jose Riveiro as the new Orlando Pirates coach.

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As reported by Sports Brief, Riveiro was announced last week Saturday, and will steer the club on a three-year-long deal. According to a club insider, the day before the Spaniard Riveiro was revealed, Ncikazi had a meeting with the players planning for the season.

Ncikazi's former colleague Fadlu Davids departed the club three weeks ago, with Pirates having no plans whatsoever of letting Ncikazi leave too, stating that he will serve in some capacity as an assistant coach.