Pirates allow José Riveiro to leave early after signing with a new club

Orlando Pirates have granted coach José Riveiro an early release, and his final match will be Bucs' Betway Premiership fixture against Lamontville Golden Arrows at Orlando Stadium on Tuesday (7.30pm).

Pirates announced on April 3 Riveiro would not renew his three-year contract at the end of the 2024-25 campaign.

In a surprise move, on Monday the club said it would allow the 47-year-old Spaniard to leave this week despite Pirates having four league matches remaining after the fixture against Arrows. Bucs chair Irvin Khoza said this was because Riveiro has signed with a new club.

The announcement follows Pirates' 2-1 defeat against Kaizer Chiefs in Saturday's Nedbank Cup final at Moses Mabhida Stadium, which denied Bucs the opportunity to give Riveiro a trophy send-off.

It also comes as a concession by Pirates and Riveiro that the club will not win the 2024-25 Premiership, where Mamelodi Sundowns need a point to clinch an eighth successive championship from their remaining two games.

“Orlando Pirates FC can confirm head coach Jose Riveiro will be on the bench for the final time when the team hosts Golden Arrows on Tuesday evening,” Pirates said.

“The club has granted coach Riveiro an early release from his contract, which was originally set to run until the end of June 2025.”

Khoza said Riveiro “approached us a few weeks ago with a request to be released from his contract ahead of schedule, having signed with a new club”.

“Given the timing, amid a series of crucial fixtures, we believed it was best to delay this announcement until after the Nedbank Cup Final,” Khoza said.

“His contribution since joining the club has been immense. We learnt a lot from him, and he learnt a lot from us.

“While we would have preferred to formally honour him with a proper send-off, we fully respect his decision to depart before the end of his tenure.”

Riveiro said the departure will be emotional.

“I want to express my sincere appreciation to Orlando Pirates for allowing me the opportunity to leave before the end of my contract. As someone who has never found goodbyes easy, this moment is particularly emotional for me,” the coach said.

“I am deeply grateful to everyone at the club, from management and technical staff to the players and the many individuals behind the scenes who work tirelessly to support the team.

“To the players, thank you for believing in the journey we shared and for giving everything on the pitch. And to the supporters, when I first arrived I challenged you to come out in your numbers and rally behind your team — you did that, and more.

“You turned every match into a moment to remember, and your passion is something I will carry with me forever.

“Thank you for allowing me to be part of this great club’s story.”

Pirates said their remaining matches after Riveiro's departure “will be overseen by assistant coach Mandla Ncikazi, who will take charge of the team on an interim basis”.

“He will be supported by head performance analyst Rayaan Jacobs and the rest of the club’s technical and support staff.”

Riveiro steered Pirates to five of eight domestic cup trophies in his three years at Pirates, including three successive MTN8 titles and two in a row in the Nedbank.

They ended runners-up twice to Sundowns in the Premiership and are virtually assured that position again in 2024-25.

What made the Spaniard most marketable was he steered Bucs to the Caf Champions League semifinals this campaign, losing 3-2 on aggregate to Pyramids FC. Pirates were the only unbeaten team in the quarterfinals, progressing comfortably through Group C with 14 points to record 12-time Champions League winners Al Ahly’s nine in Bucs’ first return to the round robins since 2018-19.