The long waited naming of the new national football team coach is expected this week according to the Minister of Culture and Sport, Joseph Habineza. The flamboyant administrator told Times Sport that the search for a foreign coach which has been on for while is expected to come to an end before the end of this week. We expect the Amavubi Stars head coach in a week’s time and I will positively let you know, Habineza said. Habineza further added that the newly appointed Congolese coach Raoul Shungu is simply serving on an interim basis but will take the assistant coaching role once the long term coaching appointment has been made. Shungu, returned back for a second spell at national league club Rayon Sport this year after coaching the Seychelles national team. However, the local football federation (Ferwafa) boss Brig. Gen. John Bosco Kazura could not neither confirm nor deny the development but said, I can’t add anything on the Sport Minister’s comments, The surprise appointment of Shungu came after Jean Marie Ntagwabira and Antoinne Rutsindura failed to produce positive results in regard to the Amavubi Stars’ team improving standards with in two months in charge. The national team head coach post has been vacant since former Dynamo Zagreb trainer Josip Kuze quit Rwanda early this year after signing a deal until 2010 to take charge of Japan’s JEF United. The 54-year-old was a replacement for German Michael Nees, who was sacked after the team failed to qualify for the 2008 African Cup of Nations. Recently, Ferwafa denied reports that they are in talks with Polish coach Henri Kasperczak to take charge of Amavubi Stars ahead of the 2010 Fifa world cup /Can qualifiers due to start in May. Kazura told Times Sport back then that they haven’t contacted the polish to take over the national team. Recently, Henri Kasperczak said he had been approached to take charge of Rwanda. Kasperczak has not coached since quitting as the manager of Senegal at the African Cup of Nations in January in Ghana. Kasperczak added that he has also received several offers from clubs sides in Africa and Europe. The Polish coach resigned his post as Senegal coach after the Teranga Lions failed to progress from the group stages hence becoming free to talk any other team. Kazura said that they are in a process of contacting several coaches with former German and Nigerian teams’ coach Berti Vogts also on the shortlist. However the German has since been named to the coaching job of Azerbaijan ahead of French man Philippe Troussier who was also a one time former coach of the Nigerian. The 61-year-old Vogts, whose biggest triumph was leading Germany to the 1996 European Championship title, also coached Scotland before coaching the Super Eagles Vogts left his job in the wake of a hugely disappointing Nations Cup campaign. Although Ferwafa does not reveal how much the coach will be paid, it is expected he will sign a two-year contract that run from 2008 to 2010. If any coach takes over Amavubi Stars, his main objective would be to qualify Rwanda into the 2010 Nations Cup and World Cup when the qualifiers start late next month. Ends
