Jonty Mark takes a look at the three top candidates for the Bafana job and, erm, Pep.
1 Gordon Igesund
The favourite for the Bafana job will land in Johannesburg from China this morning with eyes open for a Safa limousine to scoot him off for talks with the association bigwigs. Igesund is arguably the most successful coach in Premier Soccer League history, picking up four league titles with four different teams and guiding Moroka Swallows to second place last season, a remarkable recovery having just staved off relegation in 2010/11. Igesund can be credited with reviving the careers of the likes of David Mathebula, Joseph Makhanya and Lerato Chabangu, and his motivational skills might just be the perfect tonic for a beleaguered Bafana.
Chances: 9/10
2 Steve Komphela
Komphela has been appointed caretaker coach following the sacking of Mosimane, and has the perfect opportunity to put himself in the shop window as Bafana take on Botswana in a 2014 World Cup qualifier in Gaborone on Saturday. If Komphela can take a squad that must be desperately low in confidence and turn them into winners this weekend, there will be a clear argument that Safa need look not further than a man coming off the back of an excellent season at the helm of Free State Stars. Punters and the press can certainly expect an entertaining soundbite or two from a man who loves to wax lyrical about the beautiful game. Even if he doesn’t end up with the top job, we can expect Komphela to be retained by the association as an assistant, having only been appointed in April, a move that does look slightly suspicious, in the light of the week’s events.
Chances: 8/10
3 Gavin Hunt
Hunt has been South Africa’s most successful coach of the last five seasons, winning three league titles in a row form 2007 to 2010 with SuperSport United, as well as this season’s Nedbank Cup. The former Hellenic centre back built an impressive CV at the helm of Black Leopards and Moroka Swallows, before joining Matsatsantsa, and has certainly proved a master at making the most of limited resources, with SuperSport more than holding their own against the likes of Mamelodi Sundowns, Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs. Perhaps he is the perfect man to turn Bafana’s current klapped out old banger into a Bentley Continental of the African and world game.
Chances 7/10
4 Pep Guardiola
Two-time Bafana coach Carlos Alberto Parreira talked a lot about finding an identity for South Africa football, in the same way that his native Brazil have a style that is all their own. And some use that was, as Bafana under Parreira, Joel Santana, and now Pitso Mosimane, have continued to plough a straight line of mediocrity. So how about we just rope in Pep Guardiola? He’ll surely have Bafana playing like Barcelona in no time, and what do you know, he’s available, if Safa can persuade him out of a sabbatical! Guardiola will surely take just a couple of training sessions to turn Morgan Gould into a Carlos Puyol, Steven Pienaar into Lionel Messi, and Andile Jali into Yaya Toure. There’s just one problem - Chelsea are interested and they might just have a bit more money.
Chances 0/10 - The Star