Local coaches fall short on requirements
Football Association of Malawi (Fam) has set up the highest level of qualifications for candidates wishing to apply for the Flames coach job.
According to the vacancy that Fam has placed in The Daily Times, the association is looking for candidates that must have a minimum qualification of Uefa A, Uefa B or Fifa Pro licence.
These are the highest qualifications in football coaching profession and could be a stumbling block to locals wishing to apply for the job.
When we tried to find out if any local coach has such qualifications, Fam technical director, John Kaputa, was sceptical.
“Let me check my records first, otherwise I cannot say that we have coaches with such qualifications,” he said.
Kaputa said he had already requested curriculum vitae (CV) for all local coaches.
“I asked coaches to submit their CVs two months ago,” he said.
He, however, said the exercise had nothing to do with the Flames coaching job.
“It has nothing to do with the Flames coach job. It’s just for records,” he said.
However, the coach clarified that while
Malawian coaches might not possess the Uefa or the Fifa Pro licences, Confederation of African Football (Caf) already introduced their equivalent licences.
“There are Caf licences that are equivalent to the Uefa licences,” he said. “
“That’s why we have Uefa B and Uefa A equivalents,” he said.
“Those qualifications are as good as those that are used by Uefa.”
However, the vacancy does not mention that equivalent licences are admissible.
So far, 31 foreign coaches already sent their CVs and expressed interest in the Flames job.
Among the 31 coaches, eight are from the African continent while 23 are from Europe.
Fam has planned to spend a maximum of $30,000 (about K12. 7 million) a month on the salary of an expatriate coach if one of them lands the Flames job.
General secretary, Suzgo Nyirenda, last month told The Daily Times that Fam was not necessarily looking for an expatriate.
“I am not saying we are employing an expatriate coach, but if a foreign coach is shortlisted for the job, we are looking forward to government’s support as usual.
“We have already given them the value of most of the coaches on the market. It is about $15,000-$30,000 (K8.5 million-K12.7 million) per month. We expect something closer to that. Sometimes they bring their own backroom staff, people they work with,” he said.
A vibrant writer who gives a great insight on hot topics and issues
