BBC SPORT | Football | Africa | New Senegal coach 'will be French'



By Ben Sutherland BBC Sport Online

The successor to Bruno Metsu as coach of Senegal will be another Frenchman, the Senegal Football Federation (FSF) has told BBC Sport Online.

Senegal's coaching options

Metsu quit the Dakar Lions to take charge of UAE club Al Ain, and on Monday formally announced he would not be seeking to return to the job as he had initially planned.

Now the FSF say that his permanent replacement will also be French, rejecting calls to give Metsu's assistant during the World Cup, Jules Bocande, a chance at the top job.

"Senegal has reached a level internationally, and we must keep this position," FSF spokesman Cheikh Tigiame Fall told BBC Sport Online.

"To do this we need a coach with great experience in the international field, in particular a French coach."

No return

Fall pointed out that the large numbers of Senegal internationals playing in La Championnat was the key reason behind the FSF's decision.

"Sometimes it is difficult to get hold of the players for the international matches," he said.

"If we have a French coach - as with Bruno Metsu - it will ease the contacts with the French clubs."

Jules Bocande
Bocande is only temporarily in charge
Fall added that while he thanked Metsu for his work, there was no way that the FSF could have considered allowing him to return in 10 months time, as the Frenchman had requested.

Fadiga demands Metsu's return

"Can you give me an example from the field of international football of a coach saying, "I have an opportunity to gain more money, I'll go there, but in some months I will come back?" No, I think you can't be serious," Fall continued.

"If we accepted [Metsu's proposal], it would be difficult for us to explain it to the Senegalese people.

"When he asked for that opportunity, we had many reactions in Senegal - and almost all were negative."

Should Metsu have quit Senegal?


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