(MENAFN- The Post) MASERU – Lesotho Football Association (LEFA) President Advocate Salemane Phafane has dropped a big hint that the next coach for the national team could be a foreigner.
The national side, Likuena, has been without a coach since Thabo Senong resigned in July just a week before the COSAFA Cup in South Africa.
Phafane said LEFA's technical director, Leslie Notši, has been tasked with overhauling the national team and preparing it for the new coach because“the coach that didn't have the benefit of watching the players must not find us folding our arms when he gets here.”
A local coach, and maybe even a South African coach, would not need the technical director to prepare a team for him.
However, a coach from outside these two countries would definitely need to find a team that has been prepared and to which they can make alterations if the new coach wishes to.
Another big hint that Phafane dropped was the bilateral agreement the association is close to agreeing with Belgium.
Through the agreement LEFA is hoping to recruit coaches from Belgium or have Belgians come to Lesotho to train local coaches. With an agreement with FIFA's number one ranked country, LEFA would not only benefit with educational programmes for coaches, but perhaps even with equipment.
Although the search for the new coach is on, Senong's successor will not be announced anytime soon judging by LEFA's statements. The new look Likuena will see a lot of current players being left out but some are expected to keep their places in order to mix new blood with experience.
It remains to be seen whether the 'Mozambican tour troublemakers' will be part of this new team.
The criteria for a player to be in the national team has been drawn up.
For players to be called to the national team it will be on merit alone and on their performances for their respective clubs.
However, because there is currently no football being played, it makes it difficult to select players based on their performances.
Notši, as a result, has worked with several local coaches to select the players as they work with the players on a daily basis at club level and know them better.
On top of the new look Likuena, LEFA is set to re-launch the national B Team which was famously known as the 'Special Force' in two weeks' time. This time around the plan is for the team to be on a continuous programme and challenge the national team. It will comprise players below 23 years, Phafane said.
“Before hiring a national team coach, the technical director has been tasked with rebuilding it, we want a new look Likuena, our expectation is to see (Notši) include as many new players as possible mixing them with old ones but we are really calling on him to give us a face-lifted Likuena before we can bring a coach in,” Phafane explained.
“In a matter of two weeks from now, we are launching what used to be known as the 'Special Force', it must challenge the new look Likuena,” the LEFA president said.
“The Under-20, (and) Under-17 (national teams) have been active and our expectation is that a combination of players that have been continuously trained at Under-20, Under-15, (and) Under-23 should give us a better looking Likuena and then we will bring an outside coach or even a local qualified coach to relieve the TD (Notši) of that responsibility.”
Meanwhile, the new national women's coach, Shalane Lehohla, is also expected to go into camp in Mohale's Hoek with a squad of players that Phafane said would be made up of players based outside the country and the top talents that are already in the country.
The aim is to start preparing for when Mehalalitoe goes back to compete internationally at the Women COSAFA Championships next year.
With the talent in the women's game, Phafane said Mehalalitoe should come up with a very dynamic team.
Tlalane Phahla
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