Why Zimbabwe is failing to produce good football coaches

ZIMBABWE has been blessed with an array of great football talent from the 1970s to the current ones.

Some of them have gone on to become great coaches especially the older generation that includes the late Obadiah “Wasu’’ Sarupinda, Mick Poole (late), Freddy “Karamba’’ Mukwesha (late), Barry Daka (late), Steve “The Dude’’ Kwashi (late), Sunday “Mhofu’’ Chidzambwa, Shepherd Murape and Gibson “Homeboy’’ Homela, among the many good coaches of yesteryear.

However, it should be noted that most of these prominent coaches played in the 1970s and before, and soon after Independence. What then comes to mind is what happened to the post-Independence era players and why they have not made the same impact like their predecessors? This is a subjective matter but I will try to give my own honest opinion which I trust is nearer the truth if not the truth.

If we are to analyse the older generation, we can see that they were probably so much eager to learn the game after organised football was set up in the then Rhodesia. Most of them had so much passion for the game and upon their retirement they took every little opportunity to acquire coaching knowledge and qualifications. To them it was more of a hobby than eking out a living out of football especially after retirement and also the desire to show the world that Africans, especially Zimbabweans can equally be good coaches just like they were during their playing days.

The post-Independence prominent retired players have arguably not had the same impact like the former and this may be traced to the lack of ambition to make a greater impact after retirement. Very few former top players have had outstanding achievements in coaching.

At the moment we have Norman Mapeza, Kaitano Tembo, Rahman Gumbo and Callisto Pasuwa among the few and these have done well both locally and regionally. One other factor that could have affected this group of former greats is the coaching standardisation programme introduced by CAF.

While the CAF A Licence is the ultimate requirement to coach top level football, in Zimbabwe that system has been so rigid as compared to our regional counterparts like South Africa, Botswana and eSwatini.

Before the standardisation programme was introduced there was a rather general disdain of coaching courses as some argued that they were too theoretical and after the new requirement it has been quite difficult to obtain the qualifications. This has been made worse by the sporadic holding of such courses by ZIFA.

The last CAF A Licence course was held in January 2017 and its now five years without any such course. No meaningful explanation has been advanced by ZIFA and I guess it requires an investigative person to establish why top level coaching is now a preserve of the qualified few.

We have had few coaches like Gumbo, Pasuwa and Madinda Ndlovu who have won titles in Malawi and Botswana but in South Africa we have found it quite tough. My assessment of the South African football system is that it’s very difficult for a Zimbabwean coach to do wonders there as the management and players culture is difficult to manage.

One would wish to have a first eleven of almost all foreign players like what used to happen in the English Premier League until they introduced the home-based quarter system. Despite all the good facilities and financial rewards we are still to see a Zimbabwean coach who will break the duck and achieve greatness in South Africa.

Overally if we are to look at the world at large we can see that not all former top players are made for the technical bench. I believe those who are thriving are those less glamorous players and those not deemed to have played football, who are actually making it to the top as they are ambitious and have a point to prove. It should also be noted that coaching on its own is an art which you are mostly God-given and perfected through training and the desire to continuously learn as football is ever changing drastically and has become more scientific.

There are so many factors that can propel one to the top and we trust that our former great players will go through the mill and establish themselves as quality coaches when the opportune time arises. The legends have an advantage of good technical ability and psychological effect on players and management, and therefore, need to exploit these to their advantage and take the game to higher levels.

Phillip Mbofana is a former Zimbabwe national Under-23 football team coach who also had a stint with the now-defunct Premiership sides Mhangura and Douglas Warriors; and was speaking to The Herald Sports Editor, Collin Matiza, from his base in Warsaw, Poland, where he is now coaching