EXCLUSIVE | Zuma weighs in on McCarthy to Bafana Bafana debate

Bafana Bafana legend Sibusiso Zuma has thrown his weight behind former teammate and AmaZulu coach Benni McCarthy for the national team job.

McCarthy is reported to be the frontrunner for the Bafana Bafana plumb job following the South African Football Association’s (SAFA) failure to finalize the deal with Carlos Queiroz among other candidates.

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SAFA was expected to announce Molefi Ntseki’s successor over a week ago but that didn’t happen with the postponement of the announcement made public just hours before what was a scheduled press conference and unveiling of a new coach.

While SAFA released a statement on reports linking Benni McCarthy with the Bafana Bafana job, Zuma believes there’s no better candidate for the job than the former Porto FC striker.    

“As somebody I played with, I saw that Benni was always someone who wanted to end up coaching. He was always interested in the tactical part of football,” Zuma told TheSouthAfrican.com.

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Zuma has been following McCarthy’s coaching career closely, and he feels what his former Bafana Bafana teammate did at Cape Town City and is currently doing at AmaZulu could benefit the country’s football.  

“At Cape Town City… not really following closely but I saw Cape Town City playing a very attacking and beautiful football.

“Right now at AmaZulu, he just changed the whole team and they are number two in the league right now. He’s doing well for himself and the South African football as well,” he added.  

“So, as South Africa, I think we have a favourable chance of building with one of our own coaches; someone who won the (UEFA) Champions League, someone who was coached by top coaches.”

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Zuma said McCarthy is his favourite for the job, adding that he’s 100 percent behind his possible appointment as Bafana Bafana coach.

“I believe he’s the number one candidate right now and my favourite. I am 100 percent behind him for this job and I hope he gets it because it’s important for the country so that he can start changing things for us and for the guys who are playing right now. I think there is going to be an improvement,” he continued.     

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Asked if the perception that McCarthy may not be ready to coach at a national team level coupled with the fact that he’s only 43-years-old, Zuma said: “I don’t know what people say. I know what Benni has done. I saw him when he was playing and winning the Champions League.

“So, I don’t know if age is a matter in what we are talking about but we need to give our people a chance,” concluded Zuma.