Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos say there’s no point in looking for a new assistant coach as he trusts Helman Mkhalele to do what’s needed.
When Broos was appointed in May last year as the official successor to Molefi Ntseki, he brought along the highly experienced former Club Brugge head coach Cedomir Janevski as his assistant.
Mkhalele was roped in as his second assistant to get the Belgian mentor up to speed with the local game and build a database of the national team pool of players locally and abroad while the Macedonian was a trusted colleague to assist in implementing the philosophy, overseeing training and monitoring talent.
When asked by iDiski Times back in June if he was happy with his technical team after failing to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Broos stated, he would make changes if he wasn’t – but now changes have been forced upon him as Janevski left for a head coach role in Europe.
The South Africa national team boss confirmed he rejected an approach from a club for the coach twice, with the first approach coming in November but couldn’t stand in his way of an opportunity this time around.
“I refused that he could start negotiations with the team and because we’re friends he agreed with that. He had another opportunity in January, again with another top team,” Broos confirmed.
“I refused again, and again he agreed to stay. So you can understand in one year you get three offers, it’s difficult for me to say no you have to stay and it would be difficult for him also to stay – you have to understand that and I have to understand it.”
The 70-year-old will, however, not look to replace the coach as he stated it wouldn’t make sense to bring in another foreigner and he believes the former Bafana midfielder has proven his competence in his role over the last year and a half.
‘I don’t have enough information about South African [coaches], so it would be again a Belgian, should I replace him,” Broos said. “But I’m so confident in what I have now, I didn’t know Helman one year ago.
“So that is also the reason when you’re going abroad that you take someone from your country because you can trust him 100% and you know how he works. So there’s no adaptation. But Helman helped me… more than Cedo in the first months because he knew South African football.
“So it went quicker to know the players, he knows the players here. So I know his opinion about football, I know his opinion about other things. So why should I take another Belgian coach? I’m so confident with him now, so we go on with him and there will be no time to adapt again to each other. Me maybe less because if it’s a Belgian I’d know him – but again the rest of the staff.
“Secondly, why do you need two assistants? I don’t know why – I don’t know why. I had two assistants but you know the reasons why I had to. Because Helman knew South African football, but now why should I take another South African assistant? Helman is competent, 400%, so I go on with him and it will be a success, I know it.”
Bafana – who have already lost three players to injury since the original squad announcement – are set to face Sierra Leone on Saturday before the Botswana clash on Tuesday at the FNB Stadium (15h00).
