Mngqithi says principles led to his Young Africans exit

Manqoba Mngqithi has spoken publicly for the first time about why he left Tanzanian club Young Africans, saying the split was about his principles and not about results on the pitch. According to iDiski Times, the South African coach explained his side of the story on SNAWA.

A short but successful spell

The former Mamelodi Sundowns and Golden Arrows coach joined Yanga at the start of the campaign. iDiski Times reported that he won the Tanzanian Community Shield, took the team into the CAF Champions League group stages and recorded 10 wins in 13 matches across all competitions.

Despite that record, Mngqithi said he did not want to go into detail about what happened. He described it as “just a matter of principles” and said he wanted his beliefs and ethics to stay intact. He added that he still has respect for the club, its supporters, the players and his staff.

“Things that happened” before the decision

Asked whether he was the one who started the separation, Mngqithi did not give a direct yes or no. He said events before the decision was taken were probably the reasons it happened. He pointed to the period before the matches against Simba and TRA, saying those events left a sour taste.

He was clear that football was not the problem. He said the team, the club president and his staff had all treated him well, and that most of their targets were met. He did say the team was unfortunate in the game against Simba. In his words, there are things at his level of coaching that a coach can accept and others that he cannot.

Aziz Ki rumours

Mngqithi also responded to talk of a strained relationship with Yanga midfielder Stephane Aziz Ki. He said he did not believe the issue was about whether he played the player, and he did not want to give the wrong impression.

He went on to say that management knew Aziz Ki would be important to the club. Mngqithi offered his own view that it is possible the player spoke to some members of management to say he would not want to play in his system. This is Mngqithi’s opinion only. He did not claim to have confirmed it, and the source report carries no response from Aziz Ki or from Young Africans.

What we know and what we do not

Mngqithi has not said exactly what the issues were, and no other party has commented in the report. For now, the only version of events comes from the coach, who says the decision was not about football.

This story is based on reporting by iDiski Times.