Premier League legend Yaya Toure says African coaches should stop complaining and can take inspiration from the likes of Benni McCarthy.
McCarthy, who started his coaching career as an assistant at Belgian club Saint Truiden, has since enjoyed spells as a head coach at Cape Town City and AmaZulu, where he won the MTN8 with the Citizens and led Usuthu to the CAF Champions League group stage after finishing as league runners-up to Mamelodi Sundowns in the 2019/20 season.
While he was sacked from both roles, the Bafana Bafana all-time record scorer landed a high-profile move as the attacking coach of the first-team at the European giants, which Toure believes showcases what is possible for coaches from the African continent.
“We’ve been complaining a lot and sitting behind the scenes and saying we deserve better but I think life is not easy. It’s up to other people, it’s their choice who they prefer, who they want [to hire]. If we as Africans carry on complaining thinking things are going to be easy and by saying things people are going to try and support us, we are wrong,” Toure said.
“I think the initiative of my big brother like Benni McCarthy, my brother Kolo, it’s the step forward we have to take on. We have to look at ourselves and think okay, it’s going to be difficult for everyone, even for those Europeans too, it’s difficult for them – but we have to do everything in our possibilities to achieve.”
Toure says the move to the Red Devils will be an integral part of his learning process for future success as a head coach as he furthers his experience at the elite level under Erik ten Hag and works with world class footballers.
He further suggested that McCarthy could be the one who comes back to Africa, applies the knowledge he’s gained and rise up to help bring the continent closer to the most coveted honour in football.
“It’s a good step, like I said, it’s always a problem to just get a job close to the top elite club with a top club coach around you. Why? Because he will give you more experience, your vision is going to be even better. And why do we have to do that?” Toure explained when asked what he needs to succeed.
“Maybe at the end of the day, when Benni stops at United he can bring [knowledge] back to the continent and try to use that and put advantage on our lads here just to teach them to play at the highest level as possible. When you… you [actually] can’t compare clubs and national teams, because the club [football] is week-in-week-out, it’s media, it’s tough and stressful.
“While national teams are [during] weekends, sometimes two or three months. You take the team for a few days, it’s different. If Benni comes in there because I’ve seen his reports, he’s been working in South Africa, his work is great – he understands everything like that now [in management] and now he goes to the Premier League where it’s the top league around the world.
“He’s [working] with a top coach as well Erik ten Hag who has a lot of experience, he understands the game well. He must learn from him and like my brother [Kolo] did. He is top you know and he can bring this knowledge back to the continent and maybe one day we can win the World Cup – that’s our dream you know, but maybe… we’ll see.”
Toure, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest midfielders in Premier League history due to his exploits at Manchester City, was speaking to the media at the launch of the FIFA School’s project in South Africa last week,
Source Link Toure – Maybe Benni Can Bring The World Cup To Africa
