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Time will tell whether the appointment of Benni McCarthy as coach of Cape Town City will prove a master-stroke or a piece of folly, but there is no doubt the straight-talking former national team striker is a welcome addition to South Africa's Premier Soccer League. McCarthy is South Africa's most decorated footballer having claimed the UEFA Champions League under Jose Mourinho at FC Porto, along with league championship wins in the Netherlands, Portugal and South Africa. His tally of 31 goals for the national team remains a record, and his star quality as a true celebrity of South African football is unquestioned. By his own admission though, he had a five-year plan to get into coaching and this opportunity has come much sooner than he expected, or perhaps even wanted. McCarthy is still in the throes of his UEFA Pro License, the highest coaching qualification in the game, and he still has 14 months to run on that course. His lack of experience as a head coach is the big worry. His tactical philosophy on the game is untested, as is his ability to build inter-personal relationships with players and how those could be affected when times get tough, as they inevitably will. He will start under pressure immediately, because anything less than a top-three league finish and a cup win next season will be a step backwards for the club. He too must factor in the rigours of competing in the CAF Confederation Cup for a chairman in John Comitis who does not enter competitions to make up the numbers, but will have the stoic belief that his side can go all the way. How McCarthy handles the pressure, the quality of opposition, working with his players and, to be frank, being back home in a city that has all the attractions you could ever wish for entertainment-wise, are the unknowns. But what is for sure is that McCarthy will receive support from Comitis, who is delighted to have brought a "Prodigal Son" home from Edinburgh, where he has been based with his Scottish wife. Comitis is a football romantic and he would like nothing more than to see McCarthy succeed at his hometown club, especially as it was the former who gave him his break as a 17-year-old in the South African top-flight as owner of Cape Town Spurs. Will McCarthy be able to bring the same discipline, organisation and attention to detail of his predecessor Eric Tinkler? Is it even fair to assume he should in what is his first ever head coach job? McCarthy certainly learnt a lot from another South African-raised coach in Chris O'Loughlin when he worked under him at the Belgian side Sint Truiden in the 2015-16 season. He admits it was an eye-opener as to the preparations needed for a single game, and that it will take the kind of dedication to his craft he did not necessarily show throughout his playing career to be successful. McCarthy is a natural though, who has excelled at just about everything he has done, and sometimes success follows people. Comitis mentioned he was in part inspired by the fortunes of Zinedine Zidane at Real Madrid, another player with next to no coaching experience who was handed the reins of a demanding job. The former France international has been an unqualified success because he has a feel for the game that probably cannot be taught. Does McCarthy have the same? It is impossible to say so now, but he does perhaps deserve the chance to give it a go. But there is also no doubt it is a big risk for Comitis, to put his club that arguably over-achieved last season in the hands of a coaching novice.
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