Former Cape Town City and AmaZulu coach Benni McCarthy has discussed his future prospect, while he awaits an update on his expiring Manchester United contract.
McCarthy, 46, joined Erik ten Hag’s technical team as striker’s coach in 2022 and has since won two trophies at Old Trafford.
However, with Ten Hag’s future at the club uncertain under the new Ineos ownership and with his own contract expiring, McCarthy has admitted he is itching to get into the head-coaching job himself once again.
“Every single day when I wake up and I go into the training ground, that is like the ultimate, it’s forever in my head, like imagine one day being the manager, imagine one day coaching this great team,” he told Robert Marawa on Radio 947.
“The desire, the hunger is out there, but obviously my role is a first-team coach working with the attacking players. Then that quickly kicks in, and then you go, you do your duties.
“And now that the season’s over, I absolutely adore and I love my role, I love working for Manchester United, but obviously the itchiness, the desire, the hunger, to be a coach, to be a manager, to be the man in charge making the decisions, of course, that’s always there and I don’t think it will ever go away. Once you get that back then it always comes back.
“So my time here, if it is the end, like my contract is coming to an end now in June, and if the club wants me to continue and in the role that I have, I will be grateful and it will be amazing.
“But yeah, I would miss having to wait another year or two years – however long it would be that the club would want me to stay – I would miss being out coaching and being the head coach, being back in the coaching area. That’s what I miss. I miss that with a passion.
“And someday it’s gonna happen and I’m gonna go back to that. But at this moment in time, I just don’t know because I don’t know if I’m staying or if I’m going because the club is obviously still going through the whole process with the manager, the rest of the coaching staff.”
McCarthy remains undoubtedly one of South Africa’s best exports having won the UEFA Champions League during Jose Mourinho’s reign at Porto. He still remains SA’s all-time leading top goalscorer with 31 goals in 80 outings.
