WARRIORS legend Benjani Mwaruwari wants to revive his coaching career in England after a false start back home in Zimbabwe where he failed in a short stint at Ngezi Platinum Stars.
Mwaruwari lasted less than six months in his first coaching job having been given a four-year contract by Ngezi Platinum Stars last year after replacing Rodwell Dhlakama.
Under his watch Ngezi played 13 matches, won three, drew six and lost four, which saw the team slip out of the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League title matrix. This prompted club authorities to cut ties with the former Manchester City and Blackburn Rovers star.
He is now back in England with his family and is looking for a restart even with academy sides and hopes to follow in the footsteps of South Africa legend Bennie McCarthy, now at Manchester United.
McCarthy, who won the Uefa Champions League with FC Porto and later played for Manchester United, was picked by the Red Devils’ manager Eric Ten Hag as his strikers coach last year and has had a fruitful stint.
And now, after seeing an African mentor break into the English topflight, Mwaruwari hopes that he can go through the steps and build a successful coaching career.
The former Jomo Cosmos forward revealed that he has a few interviews coming up and hopes he can get a job soon.
“When you see one of our great players in Africa doing well, it inspires all of us and you want to be in that group as well. Being in that group is not easy. Everyone is happy for McCarthy and he is inspiring everyone, including myself. I played in the Premier League and I want to be up there with Benni. The key is to keep on working harder until you get there,” Mwaruwari told the media after he watched SuperSport United’s Diski Challenge team take on Bristol City’s under-21 side in their tour of the United Kingdom this week.
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“My family is here, so I am based here in England. I have been doing my coaching badges and I am looking for a club to coach. I had an operation (on the neck), but I have a few offers. As soon as I get better, I’ll consider one or two. I have [Union of European Football Associations] UEFA A License, so I need to do the Pro License. I am working on it.”
He believes that he did well at Ngezi Platinum and needed more time to get the desired results, which he was, however, not afforded.
“As a coach, you want to be a top coach. But we as former players tend to rush it. I will speak for myself because I had an opportunity to coach when a top club in Zimbabwe came, so I grabbed it. In my view, I think I did well, but football is a game of numbers. What I wanted to do didn’t materialise. I needed time to do my own things, but it’s different bosses and different visions. I was meant to be given time, but it went the other way. I am here in England and I am trying to learn more, whether it's in the academy or in the first team as a coach or as assistant coach. Hopefully I can get one of those and I will learn more.”
