SUCCESS-starved Bulawayo giants Highlanders have given their new coach Dutchman Elroy Akbay a target of a top-four finish in the Premier Soccer League this year, but the club demands the championship in the final of the two years he has so far signed.
BY FORTUNE MBELE
Akbay, who arrived in Bulawayo yesterday, was handed a two-year contract as the club seeks to step out of the shadow, particularly of Dynamos.
Disturbed by the plummeting standards since they last laid their hands on the championship in 2006, Bosso have decided to hire a foreign coach, who was unveiled yesterday.
Bosso CEO Ndumiso Gumede (left) and coach Elroy Akbay at a Press conference in Bulawayo yesterday
The Dutchman was issued with his work permit on Wednesday last weeK.
Bosso chief executive officer Ndumiso Gumede made it clear Akbay would have to deliver.
Gumede, however, said while there could be excuses in his first year, he had to deliver the championship in the second year.
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“Akbay is here on a two-year performance-based contract. In the first year, he would be finding his feet,” he said. “You can’t really blame him for the choice of players that he will find. But if he is a coach of his own mettle, he should be able to guide those players into some form of team of repute. So in the first year we are expecting that in the first 10 games, he should be staying with the leading pack. It may sound steep, but we are not a small club and he has already accepted that. And if by the end of the year he finishes top four, we will deem that he has done reasonably well.”
While in the first season Akbay has been given an lesser target, there will be no excuses for failing to win the title in the second.
“In the second year there are no excuses. He would have acclimatised to the Zimbabwean environment. The big cake must certainly come in the second year.”
Akbay said he was not aware of any players at the club and Zimbabwe in general and will be consulting with members of the technical team, especially Amini Soma-Phiri, who is the assistant coach and technical adviser, and goalkeepers’ coach Cosmas “Tsano” Zulu.
The Dutchman promised to bring good football to Highlanders.
“Highlanders is a big club. What I want to give to Highlanders is very good football,” Akbay said.
“I hope that with the team I will be working with, we will get what we want this year. Normally, when you start with a new team it will take you three months to see what you want. After three months, the team will be ready.”
