Former Pirates coach set for suspiciously massive payday at Zamalek

Former Orlando Pirates head coach Milutin ‘Micho’ Sredojevic could be in for a massive payday if Zamalek chairman Mortada Mansour is to be believed.

Mansour claims that Micho’s one-year deal with the club could be worth as much as R18-million to the Serbian trainer.

Lies and likely stories

Sredojevic departed Pirates suddenly last week on the eve of their MTN 8 clash with Highlands Park. The coach claimed that he needed time to care for his sick mother, but the veracity of that claim was cast into doubt when he signed with the Egyptian club.

Another layer of intrigue was added when Sredojevic was accused of indecent exposure by a hotel cleaner just days after he left the country.

The former Pirates coach’s contract

Mansour claims that the deal accepted by the Serbian coach is worth $1.2-million per year. The deal includes a release clause that would see him paid out two months salary in the event his deal be terminated early.

Football pundits across the African continent have questioned the accuracy of this figure though as Zamalek could have secured the services of a more accomplished coach for that sum.

If Mansour has given an accurate figure, which isn’t a foregone conclusion given the man’s tendency for embellishment, Micho will earn R1.5million per month in Egypt.

Orlando Pirates Chairman Irvin Khoza is less brash than his Zamalek counterpart and has never revealed what the coach was earning at the Sea Robbers. It is safe to say that it was nowhere near R18-million per year.

The odds of Sredojevic actually seeing out the year as Zamalek coach are slim given he is their 23rd coach in five years.

Micho relieved to depart

The coach Tweeted out his relief at being safely ensconced in Egypt, perhaps referencing the criminal charges brought against him.

“Relieved that [a] terrible week threatening to destroy me as human being and hardworking coach serving wholeheartedly Orlando Pirates and South African football with sleepless nights and tireless days is back like fish in the water to football training field to serve Zamalek and Egyptian football‚” the coach tweeted.

Before joining Pirates Micho had been coach of the Uganda national team. Most of his coaching career has been spent on the African continent but this is his first appointment in Egypt. He had one year remaining on his three-year contract with the Buccaneers‚ whom he returned to for a second stint in 2017. He guided Pirates to two successive second-place finishes in the league but failed to end the club’s trophy drought.