Who do the players want?

Speculation surrounding the future Bafana coach is hotting up, as the new coach is to be announced on Friday. Media, coaches and sport fans have spoken about their favourite to lead the team to the World Cup. Fans also have a strong opinion on the local vs foreign coach debate.

But what do the Bafana players think? Obviously they have remained quiet about the situation. They are professionals, so they will play under whoever is selected. But they are also people and people by nature have preferences. I'm sure they would prefer somebody that knows their individual capabilities and who enjoys a style of football the players are comfortable with. Obviously the coach must be well respected and with the ability to shake things up without reinventing the wheel.

It is these questions that SAFA need to answer when appointing the new coach. The players are the most important stakeholder in this decision. Which coach will bring a smile and a sense of reassurance and which will bring a sense of anxiety or even fear is what SAFA needs to know from the Bafana players.



Marlon is an amateur blogger, living in London

Santana axe dangerous!

Santana is no more, and so the speculation surrounding his dismissal/sacking will unfold over the next week or so. There will also be frantic speculation on who will succeed Santana in the Bafana hotseat. As I mentioned on my previous post, South Africans never really warmed to coach Santana and so many will rejoice that he has finally gone. I'm very nervous about this situation as I feel that SAFA could be shotting themselves in the foot once again.

Bafana are in bad shape due to players warming their respective clubs benches, injuries and the general form of the entire squad. No coach can turn this team into winners in the short-run. So I do have sympathy for Santana. The danger for SAFA comes in the form of who replaces Santana and that's the million dollar question on everybodies mind. If its Carlos Alberto Parriera great, if not, South Africa will be a laughing stock come the World Cup.

There is no time for a new coach to come in and create a winning structure before the World Cup besides Parriera. This stage is too big for a local coach. So we wait and see what SAFA has instore for us come the next few days. I cannot wait.

What do you think?

Marlon is an amateur blogger, living in London

Kermit keeps scoring...

Kermit Erasmus, the U20 Amajita star keeps demonstrating his abundant talent by scoring again this week. This time against FC Zwolle, while playing for Excelsior Rotterdam in a league match. Erasmus signed by Dutch gaints Feyenoord, is on loan to Excelsior to gain first team experience. Erasmus scored within five minutes of the game by lobbing the ball over the keeper from an acute angle. Masterful.

I've attached the link, so you be the judge. Is Kermit ready for Bafana?


http://www.jupilerleague.nl/video/1000555.php


Marlon is an amateur blogger, living in London

Santana disrespects Parreira Bafana structure (conti)

So let us continue. As in my previous post, I felt that Coach Santana might be disrespecting the structure Carlos Alberto Parreira implemented for the Bafana team.
On the question of giving "everybody" a try-out in the first year! Yes I believe Parreira and Santana have meet these requirements. Nobody can really complain about this issue. However we are now in the final year before the World Cup, and coach Santana is still giving "everybody" a try-out. Surely he should be focussing on the thirty odd players in the pool that we setout to create within the first year. Bafana's first team players are currently struggling. Where are the other twenty odd players who could fill in to bolster the squads performance?
The simple answer is that there isn't. Coach Santana has largely ignored Parreira's call to create a pool of players for each position threefold. He kept playing his first team players over and over again, that now when they are injured or out of form, there is a big gap to fill.

You agree/disagree? Discuss


Marlon is an amateur blogger living in London

Santana disrespects Parriera structure

When Carlos Alberto Parriera joined Bafana Bafana, he quickly communicated to SAFA and the South African supporters the structure he will put in place within the Bafana team. Of most importance, he communicated two of his objectives that we will discuss today.

In his first two or three years in charge of Bafana he will give "everybody" a chance to prove they should be in the team. However in the fourth year or last year before the World Cup he will narrow his focus to a select thirty or so players. Secondly, he said there should be three players for every position come the World Cup.

My question is, how has Santana done with theses objectives? To be discusses later....



Marlon is an amateur blogger living in London

Bafana extend losing streak against Iceland

In a game summarised as boring by reporter, Bafana lost again. This time to Iceland. The goal was scored on the 50th minute by Veigar Pall Gunnarson . This lose extends Bafana's losing streak to eight in nine games and leaving coach Santana under even more pressure to resign his position.

Bafana zombies to blame for loses

A lot has been spoken about the reasons for Bafana losing streak. Seven loses in eight games is nothing to smile about,as fans and commentators point fingers as to who is really to blame for this poor run. As per usual, the Bafana coach is first in the firing line for fans to vent their anger for these loses. Coach Santana has never had a good relationship with South African supporters, choosing to speak indirectly via an english translator in his native Portugese at media conferences and especially employing a defensive approach in his team selection have been the main issues of contention. But is Santana the reason for Bafana poor form?

Reading summary reports and watching tv clips of Bafana games it's clear that Bafana players are mentally and physically weak. And why shouldn't they be, when half the team are either off-form, injured or are benchwarmers at their respective clubs. Of the injured we have Pienaar, Khune and yes, Benni. From the benchwarmers we have Van Heerden(Blackburn), Parker(Twente) and Digkacoi(Fulham). And then we have those that are off-form like Sibaya who only recently returned from injury and Modise who is just tired. The rest are ball watching.

It's like watching a group of zombie-like players in green shirts at the moment and its making all of us mad. But there is nothing Santana can do in the short-term but plough on, hoping for a turnaround in the players club form.





Marlon is a part-time blogger, living in London.