Leal bemoans missed chances
Orlando Pirates coach Julio Leal bemoaned the missed chances in his side's 3-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in the Vodacom Challenge final at Ellis Park Stadium on Saturday.
For the second final of this pre-season tournament Pirates failed to turn up against Spurs having lost 4-0 in 2007.
Pirates were mediocre in comparison to their midweek matches where they drew 1-1 with Spurs on Tuesday and won 1-0 against Kaizer Chiefs on Thursday.
In the final, Spurs took their chances through a brace from Rafael van der Vaart and a late strike from substitute forward Jermaine Defoe.
Pirates were wasteful in the first half with an avalanche of chances while winger Tlou Segolela summarised the side's day by missing from the penalty spot late in the second half.
"We had four or five real opportunities to score in the first half," said Leal.
"We kept attacking and got more chances but we missed and Spurs punished us with a third goal."
Despite the loss, the Brazilian remains happy with the experience gained from the tournament -- his first matches in charge of the team since taking over from Ruud Krol last month.
Leal said he would soon make a final decision on his playing squad for the coming campaign.
"We will meet management about the report from this tournament and will probably know of my squad by the beginning of the week," he said.
"We will look at what we got here and also maybe make recommendations of the players we think should be signed."
Pirates have a congested season ahead that includes the Caf Champions League, a competition they are competing in on virtue of last season's league success.
Next Saturday, they play Chiefs in the inaugural Carling Black Label Cup at FNB Stadium before the 2011/12 season opens with the MTN8 trophy, a competition they will be defending, the week after.
"The players got international exposure which is good for the Champions League this season," Leal said.
"We had just 30 days of preparation before we played the three games and didn't achieve expected level.
"We got time to go back and improve a little more before the season officially kicks off in two weeks time."
Spurs returned to the UK on Saturday night and were left with a good impression of South African soccer.
They too have some friendly matches lined up before the English Premiership starts.
"I was impressed with the standard of the players here, the games were played at a very high level," said Spurs coach Harry Redknapp.
For the second final of this pre-season tournament Pirates failed to turn up against Spurs having lost 4-0 in 2007.
Pirates were mediocre in comparison to their midweek matches where they drew 1-1 with Spurs on Tuesday and won 1-0 against Kaizer Chiefs on Thursday.
In the final, Spurs took their chances through a brace from Rafael van der Vaart and a late strike from substitute forward Jermaine Defoe.
Pirates were wasteful in the first half with an avalanche of chances while winger Tlou Segolela summarised the side's day by missing from the penalty spot late in the second half.
"We had four or five real opportunities to score in the first half," said Leal.
"We kept attacking and got more chances but we missed and Spurs punished us with a third goal."
Despite the loss, the Brazilian remains happy with the experience gained from the tournament -- his first matches in charge of the team since taking over from Ruud Krol last month.
Leal said he would soon make a final decision on his playing squad for the coming campaign.
"We will meet management about the report from this tournament and will probably know of my squad by the beginning of the week," he said.
"We will look at what we got here and also maybe make recommendations of the players we think should be signed."
Pirates have a congested season ahead that includes the Caf Champions League, a competition they are competing in on virtue of last season's league success.
Next Saturday, they play Chiefs in the inaugural Carling Black Label Cup at FNB Stadium before the 2011/12 season opens with the MTN8 trophy, a competition they will be defending, the week after.
"The players got international exposure which is good for the Champions League this season," Leal said.
"We had just 30 days of preparation before we played the three games and didn't achieve expected level.
"We got time to go back and improve a little more before the season officially kicks off in two weeks time."
Spurs returned to the UK on Saturday night and were left with a good impression of South African soccer.
They too have some friendly matches lined up before the English Premiership starts.
"I was impressed with the standard of the players here, the games were played at a very high level," said Spurs coach Harry Redknapp.