Fam snubs top coaches
Football Association of Malawi (FAM) has said top-quality coaches will not be considered for the Flames job should President Peter Mutharika approve the proposal to hire an expatriate.
FAM president Walter Nyamilandu was responding to a question on whether the list of applicants include high-profile coaches.
“We have a long list of high-profile coaches that have expressed interest, but we cannot shortlist them because we cannot afford them.
“Unfortunately, we are not spoiled for choice like other countries such as South Africa and we will have to select within our means,” he said.
However, the FAM boss could not be drawn to disclose some of the high-profile coaches that have applied for the job which fell vacant following the expiry of Ernest Mtawali’s one-year contract.
Ironically, while FAM is keeping the names of applicants under wraps, their South Africa counterparts, Safa, recently revealed some of the applicants for the Bafana Bafana vacant post and they include Roberto Mancini, Giovanni Trapattoni, Hassan Shehata, Hugo Broos, Lothar Matthaus and Bernd Schuster.
However, a soccer commentator Kim Kamau said FAM would be missing the plot if they are to be restricted by costs.
“My understanding was that we would go for top-class coaches that can make a difference and they do not come cheap.
“We have tried average and ordinary expatriate coaches before and they have taken us nowhere. If anything, FAM should have lobbied with government to go for a high-profile coach to turn around out team’s fortunes and build the capacity of other local coaches,” he said.
FAM recently said if the President turns down the proposal to hire an expatriate, the alternative will be to hire an expatriate from within Africa.
“This could be relatively cheaper. Failing which [then] we will have to settle for a local coach,” said Nyamilandu last week.
In the recent past, the expatriates hired by FAM included Kim Splidsboel, late Bukhard Ziese, Stephen Constantine and Tom Saintfiet who was engaged on temporary basis. n
