Who’ll be in the frame for SuperSport?

WITH SuperSport United being forced to look a for a replacement for Stuart Baxter, who recently took up the Bafana Bafana job, there is no doubt CVs have flooded in to the club, but it seems nothing concrete has been decided yet.

It is unlikely their next coach will be someone already well- versed in the Premier Soccer League, unless there pockets are deep enough to pay compensation for a coach currently tied to a contract. We think there are two good options to succeed Baxter, as well as one to steer clear of, and here’s why. He would not have made this list a few seasons ago, but Tinkler has proved his worth this season following the success of Cape Town City, who not only finished third in the Premiership and qualified for the 2018 CAF Confederation Cup, but also clinched the Telkom Knockout cup in December last year – coincidentally beating Baxter’s SuperSport 2-1 at the Peter Mokaba Stadium. Tinkler was vilified for not having the necessary pedigree to lead Orlando Pirates during his stint as caretaker coach first, and then as head coach, all this despite guiding the Buccaneers to the 2015 Confed- eration Cup final, which they lost against Tunisia’s Etoile du Sahel. He has earned much praise this season for being in charge of a side that only had 14 players on its books when he took over, and turned them into title contenders. Probably worth considering for the soon- to- be vacant SuperSport job, but will they be willing to pay compensation to City for his services? The Dutchman’s name has made the rounds in South Africa in recent weeks, being linked to the Bafana post that eventually went to Baxter after a lengthy search. Reports this week suggested Krol has been offered to SuperSport, supposedly by an agent, and he is awaiting feedback on whether he will even make the shortlist. His advantage is that the Premier League wouldn’t be unfamiliar territory, but having been away from it since winning the treble with Pirates in 2011 and currently being unattached, Krol is a bit outdated. Nevertheless, he would still make a good enough candidate and his work at Pirates previously and CS Sfaxien as well as Esperance (both in Tunisia) speaks for itself.

It is believed that SuperSport have in the past tried to lure Krol to the club when long-serving coach Gavin Hunt left for Bidvest Wits in 2013, but the Dutchman wanted tele- phone numbers for a salary.

And he apparently still does, even though his record shows he has not held a job at a top club anywhere in the world since sometime early last year. Perhaps a job like this comes two or three years too late for De Sa, who has most recently quit Ajax Cape Town, resurfaced at Maritzburg United only to throw in the towel three months into his six months contract. Although he does have two trophies – won with unfancied sides Wits (Nedbank Cup in 2010) and Ajax (MTN8 2015) – to his credit, De Sa doesn’t seem to have the longevity a club like SuperSport is often after. Should he even be considered, it would show the lack of high-profile candidates interested in the SuperSport post. Matsatsantsa have been down this route before with Cavin Johnson, who had done a sterling job with Platinum Stars, but was nowhere near the right fit for the Tshwane-based side when he replaced Gavin Hunt, who was lured to Bidvest Wits in 2013.

His poor results and resignations at both Ajax and Maritzburg have no doubt hurt De Sa’s chances of landing a gig coaching one of the country’s top five sides.