Veselin linked with Zebras job
Chakalisa Dube | Saturday January 29, 2022 06:00
Jelusic is said to be BFA president Mclean Letshwiti’s preferred choice. Sources have said that the main worry now is that the association does not have enough money to afford a foreign coach.
It is also still not clear if Jelusic is among those who applied for the coaching job. It said before her suspension BFA CEO Goaboane Taylor had recommended that Letang Kgengwenyane be given a short-term contract while the association was still sorting out its financial position. Taylor reportedly maintained that the association does not have the funds to hire a foreign coach. Kgengwenyane was in charge of the Zebras at last year’s COSAFA Cup following the departure of coach Adel Amrouche last year June. Kgengwenyane was part of the Zebras technical team under Amrouche. “At the moment it is unlikely that Kgengwenyane will be appointed on an interim basis because the association seems to be reversing a lot of initiatives that were brought by Taylor.
The association might proceed with plans to appoint Jelusic or a foreign coach although there is not enough budget,” said an insider. Jelusic was the Zebras coach from 2002 to 2006 until he returned to his native Serbia due to family commitments.
He was a much-admired figure among football followers in the country. During the latter years of his stint at Lekidi, he was working as a development coach after he decided to step down as a national team coach.
Although the national team never qualified for a major tournament under the Serbian, the Zebras produced scintillating displays. Jelusic’s last notable stint was when he coached Zambian elite club City of Lusaka in 2020.
In November last year, the BFA said the appointment of the coach was imminent, but sources said that the suspension of Taylor has slowed down the process. Yesterday BFA acting CEO, Tshepo Mphukuthi said that the association will give an update on the appointment of a new coach in two weeks. “I anticipate that in two weeks' time I will have something concrete to share with the media in relation to the appointment of the coach,” he said.