Kopo puts himself back in job market after Chippa ouster

Highly respected coach Kwanele Kopo has disclosed that he's open to accepting any technical role even in the second tier after leaving Chippa United, citing a quest for a new challenge.

Kopo had joined the Chili Boys in January last year as a co-coach alongside Thabo September before he assumed a solo coach role six months later. Kopo leaves with four wins from 11 Betway Premiership games with five defeats and a draw so far this season.

“I don't know yet where I am going but I am available whether it's [Premiership or second division]. I am available to work as a head coach, as an assistant coach and as a technical director. At the moment, there's nothing concrete,'' Kopo told Sowetan yesterday.

The former SuperSport United youth coach suggested he was hoping he'd get a new job once the league reaches the halfway mark.

“The first round of the season is not finished yet, so maybe teams want to see how they fare after the first round before deciding on their coaches,'' Kopo said.

Kopo also clarified that some reasons he decided against renewing his Chippa deal were personal but highlighted that he wanted a new challenge.

“My contract was coming to an end. I was offered an extension but I decided not to extend. A lot of the reasons are personal but I felt that during the time I was at the club, I had done all that I could under the circumstances. I just felt I needed maybe a different environment and a different challenge,'' Kopo explained.

One of Kopo's proudest moments at Chippa was to take the club out of the relegation zone with at least five games to spare last term. 

“When we [him and September] arrived at Chippa, they were known to be relegation candidates. We arrived halfway through the season and the objective was to make sure that the team came out of that relegation battle and we came out of that battle with five or six games to go which was something new for the club and that was my proudest moment at the club,'' Kopo stated.

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