With South Africans calling for Bafana Bafana coach Joel Santana’s head, iafrica.com's Khaya Ndubane looks at the likely candidates for the Bafana hotseat.

With Bafana Bafana not doing well and the new Safa President Kirsten Nematandani coming out and saying they want immediate results, it seems it is no longer a matter of 'if' but 'when' will Joel Santana be fired by Safa.

But, the more important question is who can take over from Santana within this short space of time and make sure that Bafana do well in the 2010 World Cup?

After giving it some serious thought I have come up with five candidates who could do the job.

Carlos Alberto Parreira:
Bafana Bafana played well under the Brazilian coach and they looked a more organised team under him. With Santana still using the bulk of the players than Parreira identified, it would not take long before he gets the team playing football again. What is more important is that Parreira is available after he was sacked by Flumenese in his native Brazil so Safa won't have to compensate any club to get him.

Jomo Sono:
Known as the 'Black Prince' of South African football, Jomo is no stranger to the Bafana set-up after taking South Africa to the World Cup in 2002 where he came close to taking the country to a maiden second round qualification. Jomo knows South African soccer very well and is good at identifying players — especially strikers. He once took an unknown Benni McCarthy to the Afcon in 1998 and Benni ended up being the tournament's joint top goal-scorer and went on to play for top clubs like Ajax Amsterdam and Porto. Sono is also responsible for unearthing Bafana stars like Phil Masinga and Mark Fish.

Shakes Mashaba:
Arguably one of the best Bafana Bafana coaches in recent times in terms of results, Mashaba is also no stranger to the Bafana coaching job. Mashaba is currently the head coach of Swaziland, but would no doubt jump at the opportunity of leading his country once more.

Gordon Igesund:
Igesund is currently the most successful coach in the Absa Premiership after guiding four different teams to the league title. He has coached two of South Africa's biggest clubs, Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns so he knows all about pressure. Igesund's only problem is that he has no international experience as he has never coached a national side, but his achievements at domestic level should be enough.

Gavin Hunt:
Hunt has just guided SuperSport United to back-to-back Absa premiership titles and is also one of the most qualified coaches in the league after obtaining his UEFA A Licence. But just like Igesund, his only weakness is that he has no international experience.

Of the five candidates mentioned above, Parreira is the more likely candidate, but the question is can Safa afford to take a chance with him when he has shown that he can drop the team in a blink of an eye?

One thing is for sure, Santana has to go and somebody new, with fresh ideas, must come on board now before it's too late.

  • Who do you think should be the next Bafana coach? Or should Safa stick with Joel Santana? Tell us what YOU think!

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