HARARE – Newly appointed Zimbabwe Warriors head coach, Michael Nees has lauded the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) for conducting a “professional” as well as rigorous interview process.
Speaking to journalists in Harare during his unveiling on Thursday, Nees said he secured the top position on merit.
His remarks come after rumors had it that his appointment was ‘unfair and biased’ with speculation Zimbabwean FIFA official Solomon Mudege influenced the whole selection process.
This comes after reports the 57-year old coach is directly being paid by FIFA, and Mudege who is accused of secretly micromanaging ZIFA, is believed to have suggested his appointment.
Nees’s appointment faced scrutiny due to some questioning his credentials as compared to other candidates who were shortlisted by ZIFA including former AFCON winner Winfried Schafer.
Many concerns were on his CV which is not as ‘good’ as those of the other candidates he beat in the interviews.
With his appointment facing scrutiny, the German tactician cleared the air saying the interviews were “not easy” and the process was “professional”.
He told the media that: “The interviews were professional and it was not easy.
“I don’t know who went through all the 300 CVs but it was very professional, especially the process. I did my best to convince the selection team.”
Nees’ first assignments are the AFCON qualifiers against Kenya and Cameroon.
The matches are scheduled for 6 and 10 September respectively.
Both games will be played at Mandela National Stadium in Uganda with Kenya the hosts on the 6th and Zimbabwe hosting Cameroon four days after.
Zimbabwe and Kenya currently do not have FIFA certified stadiums to host international matches.
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