Back-to-back runners-up finishes in the league against a rampant Sundowns team is not something to be embarrassed about. The Brazilians have been the dominant team in the land for close to a decade and will truly take something special to dethrone them.

This season was seen as Riveiro’s best chance following Sundowns’ coaching shake-up at the start and during the first part of the season. Pirates’ good start to the campaign would have definitely got the people at Kloorkop to sit up and take notice.

But, as Riveiro prepares to say goodbye at the end of the season, he can still leave Pirates with a bang with all of the possibilities for glory still firmly on the table. He still has a chance to erase the inevitable “what ifs” from his mind.

Those “what ifs” are the things he feels he could have done differently to cross the finishing line in front of the marauding Sundowns over the last few years. But those thoughts won’t matter if he can finish his tenure with the league title.

In the Betway Premiership, they trail Mamelodi Sundowns by 15 points but have four games in hand. They can essentially be three points behind the champions if they can win all their outstanding games.

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Besides the league, Pirates are still in contention in the CAF Champions League, as they hold a 1-0 lead over MC Alger after their quarter-final first leg. Additionally, they are in the Nedbank Cup semi-finals, a competition they’ve won twice under Riveiro.

While Riveiro announced he is leaving the club at the end of the season, it seems like best is yet to come for the Spanish coach. He could end up leaving with a bang and leaving the “what ifs” for others to ponder.

@JohnGoliath82