Safa, please don’t trip up new coach

Nearly a month after Bafana Bafana’s disappointing end to their attempt to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations, the SA Football Association will finally give us a way forward this weekend.

The country’s football governing body has confirmed that a new Bafana coach will be announced on Saturday, ending weeks of uncertainty after Molefi Ntseki was sacked in the aftermath of the loss to Sudan that ended Bafana’s hopes of making the continental finals in Cameroon next year.

We are encouraged to hear Safa telling us they will not repeat the mistake of hiring a novice – like Ntseki – this time around, with three big names, Carlos Queiroz, Herve Renard and Hugo Broos said to be on the shortlist. All three are vastly experienced and if one gets the nod, we are confident Bafana would be in good hands.

Queiroz is no stranger to SA football, having led Bafana to 2002 World Cup qualification before being unreasonably sacked after the team’s failure to beat Mali in the Nations Cup that year. Mozambique-born Queiroz has greatly enhanced his CV after Safa’s blunder, coaching the national teams of countries such as Portugal, Iran and Colombia.

Renard and Broos have an advantage over Queiroz, however, having won three Africa Cup of Nations trophies between them. Renard led Zambia to their historic continental glory in 2012, then repeated that feat with Ivory Coast in 2015. Broos won the Afcon with Cameroon in 2017.

To have men with such laudable credentials vying for the post should fill us with hope that the blundering Safa can finally get it right. For too long Safa executives have sought to cut corners, but this time they must not put unnecessary pressure on the coach.

There is just over a month to go before we play our first 2022 World Cup qualifier against Zimbabwe, so Safa should resist the temptation to set an unrealistic mandate. We have just failed to qualify for the Afcon; we have not qualified for a World Cup 2002.

We must not even entertain expectations that we will qualify for next year’s tournament in Qatar. Safa should be bold enough to tell the incoming coach to focus on rebuilding the hopeless Bafana with a view to qualifying for 2026 World Cup. It’s only then that we’ll be able to accept that our team needs a total overhaul.