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Eric Tinkler

SUPERSPORT United coach Eric Tinkler has described his assistant Kaitano Tembo as one of the brightest young coaches in the Premier Soccer League.

Tinkler‚ who joined United from last season’s surprise package Cape Town City last month‚ has retained Tembo as his assistant and Andre Arendse as his goalkeepers’ coach.

The duo was part of the SuperSport technical team of Tinkler’s predecessor Stuart Baxter‚ who is now Bafana Bafana coach.

“I think he has a great future ahead of him as a coach. He has a good head on his shoulders‚ he understands the game very well and he did extremely well with the team against TP Mazembe and Horoya AC when Stuart Baxter was not here‚” Tinkler said of Tembo

The Zimbabwean ex-SuperSport defender had deputised for Baxter in the Caf Confederation Cup last month, while the head coach was juggling completing his club commitments with starting for Bafana.

Tinkler continued: “I definitely see a bright future for him in the game and I am looking forward to working with him.”

In the only change to his technical team‚ Tinkler has recruited highly-rated former Bafana fitness trainer Zac van Heerden as the team’s conditioning coach.

SuperSport have been active in the Confed Cup where they have qualified for the quarter-finals and will meet Zesco United of Zambia in September‚ and Tinkler has given his players a break until next week Thursday.

“I am giving them off until the 20th and in the meantime I have the opportunity to look at some of the boys who played in the Multichoice Diski Challenge (reserve league) because we are a development club that believes in the youths‚” Tinkler said. —TimesLive