Following Senegal’s 2-1 victory in a must-win Group A match against Ecuador on Tuesday evening to cement their spot in the round of 16, the SA Football Association (Safa) has had to deal with a backlash regarding the way the association is being run.
However, Farouk Khan believes the problem is beyond the association.
Khan, the Stars of Africa Football Academy coaching director, is one of the biggest football pioneers in local football, having unearthed players such as May Mahlangu, Tsiki Ntsabeleng, Surprise Ralani and Luther Singh, among others.
He has been vocal about the downfall of South African football, suggesting that people should stop pointing fingers at Safa and rather shift the focus on solidifying the association.
“The South African public is always reacting when there are big tournaments, and only realise how far we have fallen behind,” Khan said during an interview with Sunday World this week.
“For example, we went to a tournament [Cosafa] and got knocked out by Mozambique, but it did not make headlines. However, the minute something happens at the top, we start questioning what is happening and not realise that our foundation [at grassroots level] is weak.”
The former Kaizer Chiefs assistant coach emphasized that the solution to the problem is strengthening youth development at schools.
“As a nation, we have failed our youth by not ensuring that every child, from as early as five and six years old, gets exposed to some sort of sports. We’ve done nothing for youth development at grassroot level. We talk the talk, but never walk the walk,” he said.
He stressed that South African football legends also need to be empowered with necessary tools before being given a responsibility to lead.
“We need to get school development [up and running], where kids are given the basic technical skills. I have a beautiful model on playing intelligence that I can introduce at grassroots level, and then we can introduce our legends, because we need them.
“But before we do that, we need to form the brains trust, have sufficient people around them – people like the Rhulani Mokwena’s of this world, Cavin Johnson, Sam Mbatha and Zunaid Mall. These people have a lot to offer, because they are the students of the game.”
Meanwhile, Morocco is the latest African side to qualify for the round of 16, having beaten Belgium and Canada to top Group F.
Despite Tunisia not qualifying for the knockout stages, the Eagles of Carthage displayed a good fighting spirit in Group D, securing a point against Denmark and beating the defending champions, France, in their last game.
Ghana and Cameroon are still in contention for positions in the round of 16, after their previous games proved to be vital, each picking up points against their respective opponents.
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