FRANCE 98 – General Media News Template

Wherever African coaching gypsy Philippe Troussier goes on the continent, controversy never appears to be more than a few millimetres away.

He was fired by Ivory Coast for calling the football federation president a ‘fool’ and South African club Kaizer Chiefs dropped him when players revolted against harsh training methods. Nigeria axed the Frenchman after accusations of ‘technical incompetence’ and he was in charge of South Africa less than one week when local players complained of physical abuse.

The 43-year-old son of a butcher denied the charge, saying he provoked the players to see if they could handle the aggression expected to be experienced during the World Cup. The coach, who took no-hopers Burkina Faso to fourth place in the African Nations Cup this year, faces a difficult task with a South African team he inherited just three months before the finals.

After 10 years working with national teams and clubs in South Africa, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Nigeria and Burkina Faso, the man known as the White Magician seems ready for a coaching post in Europe. His already impressive CV will be considerably enhanced if he can take Bafana Bafana (The Boys) beyond a first-round group including hosts France, Denmark and Saudi Arabia.

Troussier talks privately of his disappointment with local footballers and is expected to rely almost exclusively on European-based stars for the opening match with France.