Jose Riveiro has reflected on his first match as Al Ahly head coach following a penalty shootout defeat to Pachuca.
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The Red Devils faced Mexican side and fellow Club World Cup participant Pachuca in a friendly. The Egyptian side lost 5-3 on penalties after the game finished 1-1 after regular time.
According to Yallakora, Riveiro reflected on his team's performance and commented on the team's preparation for the tournament.
" Time is short, but the team is prepared and I am ready for the challenge of achieving something meaningful at the Club World Cup," the ex-Orlando Pirates coach said.
With Al Ahly facing Inter Miami in the first match of the tournament, Riveiro accepted responsibility for the players and the challenge ahead.
"I have a responsibility towards the players," he said.
"We’ve accepted the challenge, and we’ll travel on the 14th to play Inter Miami. No one is thinking about the time left — everyone expects us to win and perform well, and we’ll try to compete and present ourselves in the best possible way.”
Despite limited training sessions with the team, he was happy with the performance against a strong Pachuca outfit.
"The team gave everything against a strong opponent," the Spaniard said.
"We had eight training sessions before the Pachuca match, and we tried to correct some mistakes and present the best version of the team. It was a tough game, and the players gave great effort against strong opposition.”
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He concluded: "We must continue improving our performance to show up well at the tournament.”
Photo: X/@Makonco_M
