Zambia coach Avram Grant reveals he nearly coached Kaizer Chiefs in Mzansi Image Source (@ZAMFoot)
Zambia coach Grant reveals he nearly coached Chiefs
Zambia coach Avram Grant reveals that he nearly took the job in Mzansi as manager of Soweto giants Kaizer Chiefs.
Zambia coach Avram Grant reveals he nearly coached Kaizer Chiefs in Mzansi Image Source (@ZAMFoot)
Former Ghana and current Zambia national team coach Avram Grant has dropped a bombshell, revealing that he nearly mentored Soweto giants, Kaizer Chiefs.
The Zambia and former Chelsea coach, Grant said his agent offered him to Chiefs but the deal fell through five years ago.
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Grant is on a visit to South Africa for the COSAFA Cup tournament to monitor the Chipolopolo squad in the regional tourney that is taking place in Durban.
ZAMBIA’S GRANT REVEALS WHY HE DIDN’T COACH CHIEFS
The 68-year-old Israeli-born tactician guided the Blues to the UEFA Champions League final in 2008 and revealed he fell in love with South Africa as a country.
Speaking to Robert Marawa on #MSW on 947, Grant said that a move to Naturena was on the cards but it didn’t materialise.
“My agent offered me to come to Chiefs and I checked everything but I am an advisor for other companies and was busy doing other things in that sphere,” Grant said.
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“What happened in the past must stay in the past but I don’t live in the past and the past is for memories and learning lessons.
“I love this country, it’s not my first time but I love it every time I come here. I almost signed for Kaizer Chiefs five years ago but football, like life is unpredictable.
“I didn’t think that a few years ago I would be here and when I was in Israel I didn’t think I would be in England.”
GRANT SHARES THOUGHTS ON ZAMBIA AND AFRICAN FOOTBALL
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While Mzansi is praised for having well-manicured stadiums as some of them were built just before the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Grant believes there is still more to be done in Africa including Zambia.
Speaking about the standard of football and facilities, he revealed that he engaged a top official at CAF regarding football development in the continent.
“What I said to the head of CAF and Gianni Infantino [FIFA President], there is a lot of good things in Africa,” he added.
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“Nobody has enough talent to rely on talent alone. If you bring the good things from Europe to Africa, every World Cup there will be at least one team in the semi-final of the World Cup.”
The seasoned coach who is no stranger to African football stated that there is a lot of money that needs to be invested into football grounds and facilities.
“The pitches need to improve and things around the football need to improve as well. Africa can be leading in football if things mix together,” he continued.
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“Football is not only about talent, but that’s not a problem in Africa, there is talent everywhere but what you do with the talent and how you develop that is important.
“There is also a lack of courses for African coaches and football is developing a lot so you need to keep up with that.”
Meanwhile, the two Southern African powerhouses, Zambia and Bafana Bafana will renew rivalries when they meet in the COSAFA Cup semi-final on Friday evening.
