Benni deserved better

To this day I still wonder what more Benni McCarthy could have done to keep his job at AmaZulu. I mean, this is a team he found languishing in the bottom half of the league table when he was appointed in December 2020.

They went on to contend for the title and ultimately finished second, while recording the most points in their club’s history. That was enough to earn him the coveted honour of PSL Coach of the Year, which subsequently placed him on SAFA’s radar as the next Bafana Bafana gaffer. He further led AmaZulu to their inaugural continental participation in the CAF Champions League and got them to the group stages. So to be dismissed with just seven games remaining and being out of the top eight only by goal-difference seems impulsive. I concede that the team’s results have been volatile of late, but such is the nature of the beautiful game, especially in an instance where a coach is in the process of developing their philosophy, as Benni was doing.

I have confidence in his abilities as a coach and believe that with a resourceful club and a stable work environment, he can reach greater heights. By Hlolizwe Hlophe, Orange Farm