McCarthy Breaks Silence On Man Utd Spell

Benni McCarthy and Cristiano Ronaldo At Man Utd. Photo: Gallo Images

Kenya head coach Benni McCarthy has revealed that he never felt intimidated to coach some of Manchester United’s top stars during his time at the club.

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Following a glittering playing career that spanned over 15 years, McCarthy stepped into coaching and coached Cape Town City and AmaZulu before Manchester United came calling in 2022.

The South African was brought in by then-new manager Erik Ten Hag as the forward coach and got the opportunity to work alongside some of the biggest names in the world, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Bruno Fernandes, Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho, Anthony Martial, and Jadon Sancho.

Speaking to Creamer Media TV, McCarthy revealed why he was never intimidated by the prospect of working for one of the biggest clubs in world football.

“I went into Man United knowing that maybe I would be out of my depth because I have coached Cape Town City, AmaZulu and now I am asked to coach top-class players at Man United,” the 48-year-old said.

The ex-Blackburn Rovers striker explained that he was confident in his abilities to teach the players the things he knew.

“Yeah, they might know a lot of things, but they don’t know everything, so I can teach them some things that they did not know,” he said.

“That was my mindset going in there, I am not going there to learn, I am there to also make a change and a difference. To improve the situation and learn as much as I can from everything that I am given there, then I take from everybody else as well,” he added.

Speaking on the five-time Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo, McCarthy said he did not feel intimidated by him and knew there were still things he could learn from the South African.

“Whether it is Cristiano Ronaldo, one of the best players in the world, I can still teach him something he did not know because I have been on this earth long before him, and I have done it before he did it so there is something he can learn from me,” said McCarthy.

“So why must I feel like ‘wow’ and worship him because he is Ronaldo?” he said.

“No, I am here to give back, and that was my mentality, and that is why I feel I succeeded,” he concluded.

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