Brazilian World Cup-winner Carlos Alberto Parreira will announce his resignation as coach of South Africa on Monday, soccer officials said on Sunday.
Parreira will meet with the South African Football Association’s executive committee to explain he is being forced to end his tenure after just 16 months because of the poor health of his wife.
”It is a tragedy that no one foresaw and is very difficult for all concerned,” an official told Reuters.
The Sunday Times reported his wife, Leila, was suffering from cancer. Parreira is expected to announce his resignation at a media briefing on Monday.
Parreira, who won the World Cup with Brazil in 1994, had been tasked with preparing South Africa’s side for the 2010 World Cup, which the country is hosting.
Despite indifferent results over the last year, he was widely regarded as being on the right track for success.
Competitive team
Anxious to put together a competitive team for the tournament, South Africa had engaged Parreira in a blaze of publicity in mid-2006.
He only formally took up the job at the start of 2007, when he was appointed as the country’s 14th coach in 15 years.
His high salary was an immediate cause of controversy but the Brazilian slowly won over a sceptical media, experimenting with line-ups and uncovering talented players.
In an interview with Reuters during January’s African Nations Cup, Parreira said he found trying to build a South Africa team from scratch more rewarding than his previous job coaching Brazil at the 2006 World Cup.
Officials said South Africa hoped to find another high-profile Brazilian coach and wanted Parreira’s long-time assistant, Julio Leal, to stay with the team.
Parreira’s departure will be another blow for the country’s World Cup preparations.
High levels of violent crime and worries about cost overruns for construction of stadiums and other infrastructure have raised fears the nation will be unable to make a success of hosting the 2010 tournament. — Reuters