This archive report was first published on 4 December 2019.
December is here, and with it comes the sacking season in football. Managers who fail to deliver results are often shown the door, and this year is no exception.
From local leagues to the English Premier League, the stakes are high, and coaches are under pressure to perform. In Tanzania, Simba Sports Club coach Patrick Wanard Aussem was sacked in November 2019 after the club was knocked out of the CAF Champions League.
Other coaches in Tanzania have also faced the music. In July, Taifa Stars head coach Emmanuel Amunike was fired after a humiliating defeat in the Africa Cup of Nations group stages. Although Amunike guided the team to the tournament for the first time, the Tanzanian Football Federation decided to terminate his contract after the team exited in the group stages.
Kenya's Harambee Stars coach Sebastian Migne also fell victim to the sacking season after a string of dismal performances in the AFCON. Although it was costly to terminate his contract, Migne's consolation was that he had taken the team to levels no other coach had in the last decade and a half.
“Don't forget where you were; you had never qualified for AFCON in 15 years. It's not even about CHAN; Kenya has never been in the U17 or U20 AFCON and that means Kenya doesn't have the maturity to contest at the highest level,” said a disappointed Migne, responding to journalists after being eliminated from the tournament.
Uganda Cranes coach Sebastien Desabre also faced the music after his team failed to impress at the AFCON. According to the Federation of Uganda Football Association [FUFA], Coach Desabre mutually agreed to terminate his contract.
Uganda put up a brave fight in Egypt but was eliminated in the round of 16 after losing to Senegal. The casualties didn't stop there.
Egypt coach Javier Aguirre's tenure came to an end after losing 1-0 to South Africa in the host's home city - Cairo. The defeat saw the Pharaohs fail to reach the quarter-finals for the first time since 2004. The Egyptian Football Association confirmed the exit of the Mexican coach, the entire technical, and the administrative staff.
In the Premier League, Unai Emery was sacked by Arsenal after failing to register a win after seven matchdays. Tottenham Hotspur also dispensed of highly-rated Mauricio Pochettino following a string of poor performances that left the team dangling mid-table.
Bayern Munich's Niko Kovac coach was also given his marching orders early November after a humiliating 5-1 defeat at the hands of Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga.
At the moment, several coaches have their jobs hanging by a thread. These include Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Napoli boss Carlo Ancelloti, and Everton coach Marco Silva.
