SuperSport coach Tembo shrugs off talk of McCarthy move

SuperSport United coach Kaitano Tembo says he is not having sleepless nights over talk of Benni McCarthy being linked with a move to the club.

Stories of McCarthy being in discussions with SuperSport with an aim to join their technical team have been doing the rounds since Bafana Bafana’s leading all-time scorer was sacked by AmaZulu two weeks ago.

Media reports have suggested that Tembo, who has been with the club for more than two decades as a player and a coach, will not be sacked but will be redeployed within the club structures.

While Tembo is aware of the speculation around his job and McCarthy, he is solely focused on helping SuperSport win the Nedbank Cup and finish the Premier Soccer League (PSL) season in a respectable position.

“I’m not in control of that, all I have to do is to focus on the job at hand. That’s the only important thing to me,” Tembo said. “What is being said out there has nothing to do with me, and [yes] anything can happen in football, so it’s normal, it happens.

“As long as I’m here, I will keep on giving my best. That’s all I can do.”

Tembo has not even bothered to speak to his bosses at SuperSport to find out if there is any merit in the news that McCarthy might replace him.

“There’s no need to talk about it,” Tembo said. “It’s something that is coming from outside, so it’s all speculation and we can’t always act whenever things are said about the club. I don’t think that’s important.

“What’s important for us is that we’ve got six games to go in the league and the Nedbank Cup to fight for.”

Tembo and McCarthy were involved in a public spat during an AmaZulu vs SuperSport match in September 2021.

McCarthy was heard on TV saying Tembo is “broke” and the former Usuthu coach claimed his counterpart provoked him.

Tembo and his charges travel to Limpopo where they will face GladAfrica Championship outfit Tshakhuma FC in the quarterfinals of the Nedbank Cup at Thohoyandou Stadium on Friday (7pm).

Perennial top six finishers SuperSport are labouring in eighth place in the PSL  and have not won their past two league games. They lost 3-2 to Golden Arrows on Saturday and played a 1-1 draw with Chippa United on Tuesday.

“This game is very important to us because it gives us an opportunity to finish the season with silverware,” Tembo said. “We are going to go all out though it will mean we have played three games in the space of seven days, and that’s a bit taxing.

“But at the same time, I think it’s an opportunity for our players to show what they have in terms of character, because a game like that is not going to be easy as we are playing against a team that has done well so far to get to this stage.”