Who Is Man United's New Striking Coach Benni Mccarthy - Profiled

Manchester United and Erik ten Hag have appointed Benni McCarthy as the new specialist in coaching attacking plays and positioning.

The South African fills up the last available spot on Ten Hag's coaching staff but who is he and what is his pedigree:

Playing career

Benni McCarthy played as a striker for a number of elite clubs, including Blackburn Rovers in the Premier League.

Before joining Blackburn Rovers, he played at Porto in the Portuguese League from 2002 to 2006.

During that time he even scored two goals against Man United in the Champions League which helped his team progress with a 3-2 aggregate into the next round.

He went on to win the Champions League with Porto that year, becoming the first and only South African to win the trophy.

He spent 4 years at Blackburn Rovers during which time he scored 52 goals in 139 games for the club.

McCarthy finished his club career with a total of 174 goals but his record for his national team, stands till this day. His 29 goals for South Africa is the highest of all time.

Coaching Career

Benni acquired his UEFA Pro license coaching badge in 2018, but has had a successful coaching career in South Africa even before that.

After working as assistant manager at Belgium's Sint-Truiden, he was recruited by Cape Town City in 2017 and helped them move up the table to 5th in his first season.

In the next season, he delivered the MTN8 trophy, a competition where the top-8 sides from the league season, face-off in a knock-out format.

McCarthy then moved to AmaZulu, where he had an even more impressive record. He took the club that had been relegated 4 times from South African top flight, to an unprecedented 2nd place finish in the league.

This meant they qualified for the African Champions League in 2021 for the first time in their history. He was awarded the PSL Coach of the Season for it.

He left the club this March after their domestic performances took a turn for the worse due to their focus on the Champions League.

Having been a prolific striker during his playing days and an up-and-coming coach in South Africa has led Ten Hag to believe Benni McCarthy is the man to make our attack more fluid and potent.