Manqoba Mngqithi is a space rocket waiting for lift-off. Having gone from being a successful head coach to a humble assistant, Mngqithi has now set his sights on relaunching himself. The date of said relaunch is rather specific, too – April 25, 2021, the day of his 50th birthday.
Manqoba Mngqithi has sat in the front-row seat, observing Pitso Mosimane build a dynasty at Mamelodi Sundowns and has formed part of the golden circle that took The Brazilians to continental glory this year.
The call Mosimane gave Mngqithi to join his technical team at Chloorkop, when things went belly up for the KwaZulu-Natal-born mentor, was perhaps the biggest stamp of approval Mngqithi could have wished for.
Without saying so in as many words, Mosimane’s trust that Mngqithi could add some X-factor to the technical team showed that the latter belonged in the big time.
Rhulani Mokoena was the final piece of Mosimane’s beautiful mosaic. But deep inside Mngqithi still lies the burning desire to head a top-flight club again – a need further enflamed by what Mosimane has achieved with Sundowns since 2012.
Not one for the spotlight, and less so for media interviews, he prefers to work in the shadows and go about his business in the backroom while his craft speaks for itself on the pitch.
The fact that he’s only one of two South African coaches in possession of a winners medal for every domestic club competition, as well as the CAF Champions League (Mosimane being the other), makes his 2021 D-Day warning rather ominous for those he’ll come up against.
“I still harbour ambitions of furthering my qualifications and rubbing shoulders with some of the top European coaches in a coaching course, to see what it is that they do differently and learn from it,” Mngqithi tells KICK OFF.
“I’ve given myself enough time to say, ‘I will be looking at seriously relaunching myself into the international space at around [the age of] 50’ and be one of the best coaches in the country.
Bu hikaye Kickoff dergisinin January 2017 sayısından alınmıştır.
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Bu hikaye Kickoff dergisinin January 2017 sayısından alınmıştır.
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