Former Al Ahly assistant coach Cavin Johnson has applied for Tanzanian side job Simba SC, iDiski Times has learnt.
Simba are under interim coach Juma Mgunda, who was appointed five days ago, after they axed Zoran Manojlović.
The club CEO Barbara Gonzalez has made it clear that they “no longer need ‘plumbers’ to steer them forward.”
Johnson left Ahly as Pitso Mosimane’s assistant in September last year, though it was not clear as to why he left the club which had just won the CAF Champions League in July after beating Kaizer Chiefs.
However, since Johnson surprisingly left Ahly where with Mosimane he won two Champions Leagues, the CAF Super Cup, the Egyptian Cup and collected a FIFA Club World Cup bronze medal, he has been unattached.
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Simba, who reached the quarter-finals of the CAF Confederation Cup last season, losing to Orlando Pirates, are looking for a coach with Uefa Pro or CAF Pro license, this publication has learnt.
These are also requirements from coaches who are either based in Africa or abroad to coach clubs that are participating in two CAF premier club competitions.
Other requirements needed by Simba are a coach who has won a local league in the last two seasons and is experienced in continental football over the past five years.
“We need qualified African coaches who are committed to a long-term project, not tourists and/or plumbers,” Gonzalez told journalists a few days ago.
“There’s a lot that isn’t said when a club releases a press release out of respect for the employee. It’s only been a few minutes, and my phone is flooded with European CVs, but not one African coach.
“If we want continental football to do well, we need to mirror what is happening in our big national teams representing us in the World Cup.”
Simba are already on course to book their spot in the next round of the CAF Champions League after beating Malawi side Nyasa Big Bullets 2-0 away in the preliminary round on Saturday, a clear indication that a coach with Champions League experience is who they desire to have. They will host Bullets in the second leg in Tanzania next weekend.
Story by Robin-Duke Madlala (@duke_robin).
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