Widely considered the greatest soccer player of all time, Brazilian scoring legend Pele offered troubled and often-confused South African soccer officials some sound advice on Monday, soon after his arrival in the country.
On the thorny issue of who should be appointed as Bafana Bafana coach, and whether it would be a good idea to choose a Brazilian, the player who participated in three World Cup-winning combinations (1958, 1962 and 1970) said the matter was a complex one and needed a great deal of thought and planning.
”There are good Brazilian coaches and there are bad ones,” said the great man. ”If you can find a very good Brazilian coach, well and good. If you land up with a bad one you will only have the same problems you would have with a bad coach from any other country.
”More important,” he added, ”is the quality of the coach. If you have someone suitably qualified in South Africa that is fine. If not, you need to look elsewhere.”
Pele was also down to earth and level-headed when asked whether an African nation was capable of winning the World Cup in South Africa in 2010. ”It’s difficult enough prophesying who will win the World Cup in Germany this year,” he said. ”It’s a little early to predict who can win the World Cup in 2010.”
Pele said Brazil appeared to have the best team in the world right now and warranted being regarded favourites for the tournament in Germany.
”But there are no certainties at the World Cup,” he added. ”One slip-up can cost even the best team the World Cup. It happened to Brazil in Spain in 1982 and many rated France the favourites to retain the trophy in Japan and South Korea in 2002. Instead, they were eliminated in the first round.”
Pele is here to help launch the 2006 World Cup Mastercard credit card, with a percentage of proceeds from the sale of the cards going towards the African Eagles Development programme in South Africa. — Sapa