Orlando Pirates head coach, Jose Riveiro has expressed his satisfaction with the performances of the young players recently promoted to the senior team.
Speaking to journalists during the media open day on Friday, ahead of their Betway Premiership match against Stellenbosch FC on Sunday, Riveiro emphasized that age isn't the determining factor for team selection—readiness is.
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The Spanish coach noted that what truly matters is a player's ability to contribute, regardless of age.
"The best thing is recruitment. Have a good scouting structure in order to accumulate the capacity in the youth structures. The academy: But I don't see the players as youngsters or experienced players. He is good or not good enough. He is ready or he is not ready. He is convenient or not convenient for the game. It is not whether he is 19, 20 or 22. It does not make a difference when he was born. When a player is ready he is ready. When a player is talented he is talented. That's the system itself. You play them or you don't play them. It's simple," Riveiro told the media.
Riveiro also addressed the perception of risk associated with playing younger players.
"People talk about taking the risk of playing young players. For me the risk is playing a player who is not ready. It doesn't matter whether he is 20 or 30. In our case the boys are showing that they are ready and capable to survive in different environments. So far we are happy. We are clearly inspiring more youngsters to be ready. Age is not going to be a problem if they are ready," the coach added.
Recent performances from players like Relebohile Mofokeng, Mohau Nkota and Thabiso Sesane, have underscored the success of Pirates' developmental program. Nkota notably scored a brace against AmaZulu FC and repeated this feat in a CAF Champions League match, the 2-1 victory against CR Belouizdad in Algeria.
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Mofokeng has been consistently impressive since his promotion last season, while Sesane has excelled in central defence, earning call-ups to the national team, Bafana Bafana.
Meanwhile, Bucs have impressively won all seven of their Betway Premiership league matches this season so far. Riveiro attributes this success to the hard work and development the team has undergone over the past two seasons.
"It's not that things just click. It's something that takes time. We have been working hard for the past two seasons and now we are getting better and we can not separate what is happening this season from what we have learnt from the past two seasons. We are growing now because of those last two seasons," Riveiro observed.
He also noted that the team is gaining invaluable experience with every game they play.
"If you look at the level of confidence that the players are showing it speaks a lot of the mentality of the team. I am sure the team will get better and better with us playing in the CAF Champions League group stages now. The experience gained is very important mainly for the young players and with the experience from the national team we want to capitalise on that for the future of the team," Riveiro told journalists.
