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St George eye African conquest

06-07-2010

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After finishing second in the recent Cecafa (Council of East and Central Africa Football Associations) Club Championship in Rwanda, St. George of Ethiopia believe they are on course to conquering Africa.

The silver after losing 0-2 to Rwanda’s APR in Kigali is the highest finish by an Ethiopian side in this popular tournament.

St. George tactician Mitcho Sredojevic (Serbia) says the great run in Rwanda was encouraging considering that Ethiopia has been out of international football for three years.

Ethiopia was suspended for two years by FIFA due to leadership wrangles in the Ethiopian Football Federation.

“We used that time in the ‘wilderness’ to go to the grassroots and nature talent from there,” says Mitcho, a veteran of the east African scene.

“Half of my players in Rwanda were picked right from the streets and they have proved that they can take on the best in the region,” says Mitcho.

“In another few months, they will be able to challenge the best on the African continent,” he adds.

“I come from Serbia where we believe in molding players and today we are the biggest producers of quality players for the European market.

I am doing the same with St. George and big success is on the way.”

Mitcho laments that most teams believe in buying players for quick results “instead of producing players in their own garden.”

“The good thing is that Ethiopians are 100 per cent behind their football as confirmed by the reception we got on arrival from Kigali,” says Mitcho.

“We have proved to them that the sleeping lion of African football is waking up.”

Mitcho is the longest serving foreign coach in eastern Africa with coaching experiences drawn from SC Villa in Uganda, Young Africans (Yanga) of Tanzania and is currently serving a second term at St. George. In between those 10 years in east Africa, he has also coached Orlando Pirates of South Africa.

And Mitcho is confident east African football will soon make a major impact on the world scene.

“Today we have MacDonald Mariga playing for the European champions, Italy’s Inter Milan. Soon more players will be playing at that level,” Mitcho predicts.

“This is part of my African dream,” he adds.

Ahead of the World cup in South Africa, Mitcho will be rallying behind his native Serbia but his heart will be with the African sides.

“I expect the African teams to provide their best ever showing in World Cup history.

“I look forward to see what Carlos Alberto Pereira is going to do with Bafana Bafana after very serious long preparation and being at home; what knowledgeable and hardworking Lars Lagerbeck can do with Nigerian Super Eagles, what experienced and proven coach like Erricson can do with ultra talented but underachievers Ivory Coast Elephants, what my good friend Milovan Rajevac can do with quality but disturbed with injury problems Ghana Black Stars, if Paul Le Guen can return Cameroon Indomitable Lions to where they belong and lastly what the only representative of the African coaches Rabah Sadane can do with Algerian Desert Hawks.”

RESULTS

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