South African coach Thabo Senong breaks silence on his sudden departure from Highlanders

South African coach Thabo Senong has revealed what transpired between him and Highlanders, leading to his premature departure from the club.

Senong had signed a two-year contract, but just days after his unveiling, the club made a U-turn and decided to appoint former Manchester City striker Benjani Mwaruwari as head coach.

Speaking in an interview on South African radio station Metro FM, Senong said he was informed by the club’s CEO that Highlanders’ financial benefactors wanted a local coach shortly after he had signed the deal.

“I signed my contract in early December and spent the entire month preparing for the pre-season,” Senong said. “I travelled to Bulawayo on 5 January and was officially announced as the new head coach.”

He added: “During the process of applying for the work permit, that’s when all the developments started to unfold.

“I was engaged by the club’s CEO regarding some changes that were being pushed at the club. The financial backers felt they wanted the club to have a local coach, and that’s when the name of Benjani Mwaruwari was proposed.”

Following the contract U-turn, Highlanders offered Senong a role as assistant coach to Benjani Mwaruwari. However, the former Bafana Bafana coach said he declined the offer and claimed he was given less than two hours to leave the country.

When announcing his departure, Highlanders stated that Senong had been advised by authorities to return to his home country while awaiting his work permit, in order to avoid violating his visa conditions

The coach continued: “The CEO then made some suggestions, including that I become the assistant coach or take up a technical director role.

“I was looking forward to leading the team and had already been involved in restructuring the squad, so it was disappointing to be asked to take on another role.

“I have no problem working in any capacity, but I felt it was unfair to be asked to switch roles just to satisfy the financial backers and the squad.”

Senong further revealed that he left his bags in Bulawayo, which remain under the custody of Highlanders, and confirmed that he is still in the process of terminating his contract with the club. He also expressed disappointment with Highlanders, accusing the club of misleading him.

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