CAF RED CARDS DE JONGH!

MBABANE – Former national team, Sihlangu Semnikati head coach, Pieter De Jongh’s coaching qualifications are in the spotlight – again.

This follows a decision by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to dismiss his UEFA A Licence coaching certificate as he does not possess a CAF A Licence. De Jongh, now coach at Zimbabwe’s FC Platinum, has not been allowed to sit on the technical bench during CAF inter-club matches.

A request by his team, FC Platinum, to be exempted and be allowed to sit on the technical bench has been turned down by CAF.

This is the second time the Dutch’s coaching qualifications have come under scrutiny as local fans also questioned it when he was hired by the local football mother body, Eswatini Football Association (EFA) in March 2017.

sidelined

The nomadic Dutch coach, who has coached in Rwanda, Kenya, Moldova and Hungary, made headlines yesterday after CAF sidelined him from officiating during the ongoing 2022 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Qualifiers. 

De Jongh is a holder of a UEFA A licence obtained in his native country of Netherlands. 

Information sourced from cafonline.com, under the CAF Licensing System, state that the programme that was implemented in January 2009 aimed at ensuring that each African coach operating in Africa possessed the relevant license to perform his or her duties. It was further stated that this landmark licensing programme’s goal was to set and promote benchmarks regarding coaching on the continent and help recognise African coaches for their knowledge and experience. CAF also provides programmes for European coaches to convert their qualifications as well as upgrade to the required standard.

adamant

However, EFA Chief Executive Officer (EFA) Frederick Mngometulu was still adamant when reached for comment yesterday that De Jongh deservedly coached Sihlangu as he qualified for the EFA’s qualification requirements.

“The clarity is that qualifications change every year and at the end of the day, it’s what CAF wants for their competition. Pieter De Jongh has UEFA Coaching licence A and it conformed to what was advertised for the Sihlangu coaching post. It’s now an element of how CAF addresses foreign coaches with UEFA coaching licences,” Mngomezulu said. 

Mngomezulu said the coach was picked from a shortlist of four locals and 15 foreigners. He said the EFA’s requirements were either UEFA Licence A, UEFA Pro or CAF Licence.

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