By Goal.com News on Tuesday, 09 February 2021
Category: Goal.com News

'Little disappointed' - Orlando Pirates' Zinnbauer unsatisfied despite Cape Town City win

Austin Ditlhobolo

@A_B_Ditlhobolo on Twitter

The German tactician also praised Man of the Match Siphesihle Ndlovu and Paseka Mako, who were deployed as full-backs

Orlando Pirates head coach Josef Zinnbauer was a 'little disappointed' to see his side score just two goals against Cape Town City on Tuesday.

The Buccaneers returned to winning ways in the PSL by securing a 2-0 win over the Citizens at Orlando Stadium with Deon Hotto and Vincent Pule scoring for the Soweto giants.

Bucs had lost to Lamontville Golden Arrows in their previous league game before they faced City and Zinnbauer admitted that his side was under pressure. 

What's been said

"I think from the first minute until the last minute we were in the game, we had a lot of possibilities in the first half to score, in the second half also, that was unbelievable," Zinnbauer told SuperSport TV

"But it was a good game, a top performance, a team effort, it was important for us. But I was a little disappointed with the chances that we had, at the end of the day you know how football can be, they can get a goal.

"We had a lot of chances and the game is changing but I say again the defence was top, the offence was top, there was always a solution, the team made good work against a top team from Cape Town, they have good players, in their last games they made top games. I'm happy with my team, they made a top job."

"It was not my management or the staff, it was the team that did what we want, we had a good team talk today, we had good individual sessions in the last days, the midfielder Ben [Motshwari] and [Thabang] Monare in the first-half their defensive line was top, also with Happy [Jele] and 'Tyson' [Hlatshwayo] they made a good shifting," he added.

"You see what [Siphesihle] Ndlovu did on the right side, it is not his position, he made a top game, [Paseka] Mako also in defence, they closed the space for Cape Town [City] and Cape Town [City] always search for space and we closed the space.

"But the key was the offence, we had a lot of chances you see with Lorch, Pule, Hotto he had a good timing and a good feeling for space, he did this very well today, that's why we have the three points," he continued.

"We had the pressure, we needed three points and the team is always working when we're under pressure, I hope we get this pressure in but we don't need this normally, we need the goals, the game is coming, we need the three points and we get it."

Why does it matter and what's the bigger picture?

Pirates are now placed joint-second on the league standings - level on points with Swallows FC and SuperSport United as they look to mount a serious challenge for the PSL title. However, the Buccaneers are five points behind league log leaders, Mamelodi Sundowns, who have two games in hand and the Tshwane giants also remain undefeated this season. The win over Cape Town City has given Pirates a much-needed boost heading into their Caf Confederation Cup match against Botswana's Jwaneng Galaxy which will be played on Sunday. The Confederation Cup play-off round first-leg match will take place at the National Stadium in Gaborone, Botswana and the winner on aggregate between the two teams will advance to the group stage. Pirates' previous appearance in the Confederation Cup was in 2015 and they reached the final where they were narrowly defeated by Tunisian side Etoile du Sahel, who won 1-0 on aggregate. 

Further reading

Original link
Original author: Austin Ditlhobolo
Leave Comments