Swaziland coach urges Africa to invest in local coaches

LUSAKA, April 15 (Xinhua) -- Raoul Savoy, coach of the Swaziland national soccer team, has urged African countries to invest in local coaches, The Post reported Tuesday.

In an interview shortly before his departure from Lusaka Monday, Savoy said the idea of engaging a foreign coach was not bad but it was always important for African teams to invest in their local coaches.

Savoy, himself a foreign coach for Swaziland on a two-year contract, said that there is no major difference between African and European trainers.

"Africa has to develop its own coaches. It's time to do it," he said after his team lost 3-0 to Zambia in the African Nations Championship (CHAN).

However, Savoy said the notion that foreign coaches only came to Africa to make money was wrong.

"When expatriate coaches come here (Africa), it's about mixing people. There is no big difference between the local coaches and us.

"It is not good when the technical team is all foreign. You have to mix because mostly, coaches are former players and that is the way it is everywhere," he said.

The Swiss-born trainer said his experience in Africa had also helped him understand global football.

Savoy previously coached Cameroonian club Tonnene Yaounde and other clubs in Morocco before arriving in Swaziland five months ago, according to the Zambian newspaper.

He is hopeful of making a difference in Swazi football but admitted the task ahead is tough noting that development is a long-term process.

Savoy will lead Swaziland in the 2010 joint Africa/World Cup qualifiers.

On Saturday, Savoy saw his team go down 3-0 to Zambia in the return leg of the CHAN qualifiers at Lusaka's Woodlands Stadium and bow out of the competition via a 4-1 aggregate defeat.