Pirates coach Riveiro reticent on line-up ahead of Sundowns game

Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro would not confirm if Thembinkosi Lorch and new signings Makhehlene Makhaula and Souaibou Marou will be available for the game against Mamelodi Sundowns, despite them training with the team.

Pirates meet runaway log leaders Sundowns at Orlando Stadium on Saturday (3.30pm).

Lorch has not featured for Pirates since August after sustaining a serious knee injury, while Makhaula and Marou signed for the Soweto giants over the past two weeks.

Cameroonian striker Marou signed for Pirates two weeks ago and Makhaula joined the club from AmaZulu on Tuesday.

Riveiro was reluctant to talk about the new players at a media conference at Rand Stadium on Wednesday or even say if they were in contention for selection against Masandawana.

“I’m happy to have more material in the squad and we are working to make sure they can be ready to be selected as soon as possible,” said the Spaniard.

The coach said it was too early to tell if Lorch would make the match-day squad on Saturday.

Pirates have been on the up with three victories on the trot against Golden Arrows, Stellenbosch FC and Marumo Gallants. Sundowns have won 14 matches in a row and football fans are eager to see if Pirates can be the team to stop them.

Riveiro said the Brazilians would provide a good test for his formative squad and game plan, to see where Bucs are and needed to improve.

“Both teams are in a good space in terms of the results — you don’t win 14 games in a row if you are not doing things well, and you don’t even win three games if you are not doing things well,” he said.

“So it’s going to be a good test for both and one of us is not going to be happy at the end of the game because we are both teams that don’t play for a draw.

“We will see what happens between two teams who have good momentum, full of quality and good players; teams that are well-prepared and wellcoached. The game is going to be more difficult than usual for both teams, in my opinion.

“I think these types of games help you improve for the future too, to see if you are going in the right direction and that you will sooner or later be in a place where you want to see yourself as a team. From my perspective, the level of the challenge is going to be high. When you play against a good team, it gives you the possibility to improve.”

Sundowns will be without suspended midfielder Marcelo Allende after he was red-carded in their 2-0 win against Sekhukhune United on Tuesday night.