Is Dan the man for Pirates, can Luc make it so, is Solinas up for it?

YESTERDAY we looked at three possible coaching options for Orlando Pirates to immediately consider. These candidates were all foreign coaches – two Frenchmen and one Serbian – currently unattached, but who could be the ideal permanent mentor for the Buccaneers.

Pirates chairman Irvin Khoza has often given the impression that local coaches tend to be overwhelmed by the task at hand when given the Buccaneers job. But were he to change his mind, who would he go for?

Here are THREE more probable choices Khoza could unveil on Monday. Dan Malesela Chippa United The hype around Malesela (pictured left) has perhaps died down a bit because of the club’s recent poor results in the Premiership. The former Pirates defender was a breath of fresh air when he was appointed, albeit controversially, at the PE-based outfit in December 2015. Chippa subsequently finished the season in an incredible sixth place – above Pirates – and Malesela hasn’t looked back since. The current campaign has been quite challenging for the Chilli Boys, but Malesela is still viewed as a man quite capable of coaching the Soweto giants and succeeding. He does, however, have a buy-out clause in place having signed a three year contract at Chippa in May last year. Luc Eymael Polokwane City

One report this week has already speculated that the Belgian nomad is the man Khoza has earmarked to relieve beleaguered interim coach August Palacios. Eymael (pictured right) appears to be a man gifted enough to handle the hot seat, but the only problem is his itchy feet. The City coach is not one to stick around for longer than a season at a club and should he ditch the Limpopo team for the Pirates gig, this will continue the trend. Eymael has done more than enough to prove his worth in the PSL, and because of his efforts,

City are currently in sixth place on the log table – a remarkable feat given the club’s limited resources. Giovanni Solinas Unattached

Another coach that arrived in SA and quickly adapted when he took over at Free State Stars in December 2015.

In just six months, the Italian was able to help Stars avoid relegation and guided them to the semi-finals of the Nedbank Cup, where they were thrashed 4-2 by Pirates.

Solinas then resigned, stating personal reasons, only to be rehired in September. But the reunion didn’t last very long and the coach was again out the door having struggled to get Stars to sparkle.

His contract was mutually terminated early last month, fuelling speculation that he would be announced as the Pirates coach. Solinas may have proven himself at lowly Stars, but coaching the Buccaneers, is no easy task.

The general feeling is that if he was indeed tagged for the job, Khoza would have appointed him by now. But stranger things have happened. Latest scores: Orlando Pirates 1 Wits 2, Baroka 0 Plat Stars 0, FS Stars 0 SuperSport 0