Benedict Saul "Benni" McCarthy (born 12 November 1977) is a South African coach and former
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...
who is a first-team coach at
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
. He previously worked as head coach of
South African Premier Division
The South African Premier Division, officially referred to as the DStv Premiership for sponsorship purposes, is the premier men's professional football/soccer league and the highest division in the league system of South Africa, organized sinc ...
team
AmaZulu
Zulu people (; zu, amaZulu) are a Nguni ethnic group native to Southern Africa. The Zulu people are the largest ethnic group and nation in South Africa, with an estimated 10–12 million people, living mainly in the province of KwaZulu-Nata ...
.
A former
forward
Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward.
Forward may also refer to:
People
* Forward (surname)
Sports
* Forward (association football)
* Forward (basketball), including:
** Point forward
** Power forward (basketball)
** Sm ...
, McCarthy is the
South Africa national team's all-time top scorer with 31 goals.
He is also the only South African to have won the
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
, doing so with
Porto
Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropol ...
in
2003–04.
Early life
McCarthy was born in
Cape Town
Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
and grew up in
Hanover Park in the
Cape Flats
The Cape Flats ( af, Die Kaapse Vlakte) is an expansive, low-lying, flat area situated to the southeast of the central business district of Cape Town. The Cape Flats is also the name of an administrative region of the City of Cape Town, which lie ...
, an area notorious for its high unemployment rate and gang violence. He is the son of Dudley and Dora McCarthy and has two brothers and a sister.
His older brother is
Jerome McCarthy
Jerome McCarthy (born 6 April 1973) is a South African former footballer who played at both professional and international levels as a midfielder.
Career
McCarthy played club football for Santos and Manning Rangers. In January 2003 he pleade ...
, a former professional footballer who played for
Kaizer Chiefs and
Manning Rangers
Manning Rangers is a now defunct South African football club based in Durban. The side is best remembered as the Champions of the Inaugural season of South Africa's Premier Soccer League.
History
The club was founded in 1928 by GR Naidoo who, ...
, among other clubs, while his younger brother Mark played football at
Franklin Pierce University
Franklin Pierce University is a private university in Rindge, New Hampshire. It was founded as Franklin Pierce College in 1962, combining a liberal arts foundation with coursework for professional development, professional preparation.
The scho ...
in the United States.
McCarthy began playing at a local side called Young Pirates, which was managed by his uncles. He then joined the youth structures of a local amateur club called Crusaders. At age 17, he was signed by first division club
Seven Stars.
Club career
Seven Stars
Playing for
Seven Stars, the 18-year-old McCarthy scored 1 goal in 29 matches in the 1995–96 season, followed by another 12 goals in 20 matches, which earned him a transfer to Cape Town Spurs, which two years later merged with Seven Stars to form Dutch club
Ajax
Ajax may refer to:
Greek mythology and tragedy
* Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea
* Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris
* ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Greek ...
's
feeder team
Feeder may refer to:
Technology
* Feeder (livestock equipment)
* Feeder (beekeeping), any of several devices used in apiculture to supplement or replace natural food sources
* Feeder (casting), another name for a riser, a reservoir built into a ...
,
Ajax Cape Town
Cape Town Spurs F.C. (formerly known as Ajax Cape Town) is a South African professional football club based in Parow in the city of Cape Town that plays in the National First Division. Dutch Eredivisie club AFC Ajax was their parent club and ...
.
Ajax
In 1997, after an impressive showing at the
African Youth Championship
The U-20 Africa Cup of Nations also called TotalEnergies U-20 Africa Cup of Nations for sponsoring reason (previously known as the African Youth Championship or the African U-20 Championship) is the main international youth football competition ...
and
FIFA World Youth Championship in Malaysia, he joined Ajax in the
Eredivisie
The Eredivisie (; ''"Honour Division"'' or ''"Premier Division"'') is the highest level of professional football in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is c ...
, where he scored nine goals and was crowned champion in his first season. After a relatively successful
1998–99 season, he was sold to Spanish side
Celta de Vigo
Real Club Celta de Vigo (; ), commonly known as Celta de Vigo or simply Celta, is a Spanish professional football club based in Vigo, Galicia, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of Spanish football. Nicknamed ''Os Celestes'' (The Sky Blues ...
for a transfer fee reported to be over €6 million, at the time the most expensive transfer for a South African player.
Celta Vigo
Although regarded as one of the best African players at the time, McCarthy never established himself as a regular choice for Celta's manager,
Víctor Fernández
Víctor Fernández Braulio (born 28 November 1960) is a Spanish football manager.
He had three spells with his hometown team Zaragoza, winning the Copa del Rey in 1994 and the Cup Winners' Cup a year later. He also led Tenerife, Celta, Be ...
. After two poor seasons at the
Galician club, he was loaned to struggling
Porto
Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropol ...
in the
2001–02 season, where he soon rediscovered the form that took him to Europe.
At Porto, McCarthy played under the then newly appointed coach
José Mourinho
José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix GOIH (; born 26 January 1963), is a Portuguese professional football manager and former player who is the current head coach of Italian Serie A club Roma. Once dubbed "The Special One" by the British ...
for an underperforming team that since winning the
European Cup
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
in
1987
File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...
had never been quite good enough to challenge for the top honours in Europe. However, that would soon change.
After representing ''Bafana Bafana'' in the
2002 African Nations Cup, where his national side was eliminated in the quarter-finals, McCarthy returned to Porto, where he became the main force behind the team's recovery. He helped them to third place in the
Primeira Liga
The Primeira Liga (; English: Premier League, also written as Liga Portugal 1), also known as Liga Portugal Bwin for sponsorship reasons, is the top level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga Portugal, ...
and automatic qualification for the
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
by scoring an impressive 12 goals in 11 matches, but Porto's finances did not allow them to keep the player, despite the desire of both sides to continue.
In 2002–03, McCarthy therefore returned to Celta, where he spent much of his time on the substitutes' bench as a squad player as Porto captured the
Taça de Portugal
The Taça de Portugal (; "Cup of Portugal") is an annual association football competition and the premier knockout tournament in Portuguese football. For sponsorship reasons, it has been known as Taça de Portugal Placard since the 2015–16 seaso ...
, the Portuguese League and the
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
. When Porto sold striker
Hélder Postiga
Hélder Manuel Marques Postiga (; born 2 August 1982) is a Portuguese retired professional footballer who played as a striker.
After beginning at Porto, where he won eight items of silverware along the way, he amassed Primeira Liga totals o ...
to
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
ahead of the 2003–04 season, Porto finally acquired McCarthy for a sum of €7.856 million, (later re-sold part of the rights to
GestiFute
Gestão de Carreiras de Profissionais Desportivos, S.A., known as GestiFute, is a Portuguese company providing agent services for footballers. Unlike other football associations, Portugal allowed other parties to own part of the economic rights o ...
and
First Portuguese Football Players Fund.)
Porto
For the
2003–04 Primeira Liga season, he earned the Golden Boot award (with 20 goals in 23 matches) on the season's final matchday with a
hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three.
Origin
The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...
, and was instrumental in Porto's run in the
2003–04 UEFA Champions League, which
they won. He scored two goals against
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
to defeat them in the second round.
Blackburn Rovers
On 25 July 2006, McCarthy flew out to England to undergo a medical and probable contract signing to join Blackburn Rovers. Three days later, he signed a four-year contract with Blackburn for a £2.5 million transfer fee. The move meant that Rovers regularly fielded a side that contained two South African Internationals, the other being
Aaron Mokoena
Teboho Aaron Mokoena (born 25 November 1980), known as Aaron Mokoena, is a South African former footballer. He is currently the assistant coach of Cape Town City.
Club career
Early career
Mokoena was born in Boipatong. He moved to Bayer Leve ...
who joined the club the year previous.
After a disappointing performance in the side's 3–0 defeat to
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.
Portsmouth is the most dens ...
, McCarthy found the net on his debut at
Ewood Park
Ewood Park () is a football stadium in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, and the home of Blackburn Rovers F.C., founding members of the Football League and Premier League, who have played there since 1890. It is an all seater multi-sports facili ...
against Everton on 23 August 2006. McCarthy further endeared himself to Rovers fans, scoring a goal on his European debut for the club in a 2–2 against
Red Bull Salzburg in the
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
, and scoring another in the return leg. He finished second top scorer in the Premier League in
2006–07 with 18 league goals, as well as 24 in all competitions.
The following season got off to a poor start for McCarthy when he was stretchered off in the
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
opening day win against
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area.
Until the early 1800s, the a ...
. McCarthy was out of action for a few weeks and found first team opportunities limited, largely because the form of new striking arrival
Roque Santa Cruz
Roque Luis Santa Cruz Cantero (; born 16 August 1981) is a Paraguayan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Paraguayan club Club Libertad. He is the record goal scorer and has earned over 100 caps for the Paraguay national team, ...
. Despite being limited to largely substitute appearances, McCarthy did find the net 11 times in all competitions.
In the
2008–09 season, McCarthy appeared to be out of favour with new manager
Paul Ince
Paul Emerson Carlyle Ince (; born 21 October 1967) is an English professional football manager and former player who is the current manager of EFL Championship side Reading. A former midfielder, Ince played professionally from 1982 to 2007, star ...
, as the club's strike force was strengthened with the arrivals of
Carlos Villanueva and
Robbie Fowler
Robert Bernard Fowler (born 9 April 1975) is an English football manager and former player, who most recently managed East Bengal in the Indian Super League.
As a player, he was a striker, and is the eighth-highest goalscorer in the history ...
to join the already established Roque Santa Cruz,
Jason Roberts and
Matt Derbyshire
Matthew Anthony Derbyshire (born 14 April 1986) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for Indian Super League club NorthEast United.
He played for Blackburn Rovers for five years, and had loan spells with Plymouth Argy ...
. However, McCarthy answered these critics by scoring his first goal of the campaign – a 94th-minute equaliser in a
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
match against Middlesbrough.
In all competitions for Blackburn, McCarthy scored 52 goals in 140 matches.
West Ham United
McCarthy completed a move to West Ham United for an undisclosed fee on transfer deadline day, 1 February 2010. He signed a two and a half-year contract that was due to run until the summer of 2012. He made his Premier League debut for West Ham against
Burnley
Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...
at
Turf Moor
Turf Moor is an association football stadium in Burnley, Lancashire, England, which has been the home of Burnley F.C. since 1883. This unbroken service makes Turf Moor the second-longest continuously used ground in English professional football ...
in a 2–1 defeat on 6 February 2010, where he sustained an injury which would keep him out for six weeks. In February 2011, having played just 326 minutes of football, making only three starts and failing to score any goals for West Ham, McCarthy was omitted from West Ham's 25-man squad for the remainder of the
2010–11 season. He was also offered a £1 million pay-off in exchange for terminating his contract prematurely. In April 2011, McCarthy left West Ham by mutual agreement after the parties agreed to terminate his contract.
He made only two Premier League starts and fourteen appearances in all competitions scoring no goals.
Orlando Pirates
After leaving West Ham, McCarthy trained with former club Ajax Cape Town during the
ABSA Premier League off-season. On 2 August,
Orlando Pirates
Orlando Pirates Football Club (often known as "The Buccaneers") is a South African professional football club based in the Houghton suburb of the city of Johannesburg and plays in the top-tier system of Football in South Africa known as DStv ...
confirmed the signing of McCarthy on a two-year deal, ending his 14-year spell in Europe. On signing, McCarthy said, "I'm thrilled and delighted and hope I can show my appreciation by coming in and playing good football and hope to score as many goals as possible to put the team where they belong."
McCarthy began the season by scoring on debut and vowed to score more goals.
McCarthy scored two goals in the final half-hour to help the Pirates defeat the
Golden Arrows
Lamontville Golden Arrows F.C. are a South African soccer club based in Durban that plays in the Premier Soccer League.
History
It was founded in 1943 in the streets of Lamontville, a township in Durban. The club played in the defunct Nation ...
4–2 on 19 May 2012 to retain their
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
title. He finished his successful season with ten league goals, ending the campaign as the fourth leading goal-scorer in the Premier League, helping the club secure their second successive treble. Having already won a league championship with Ajax in the Netherlands as well with Porto both domestically and in Europe, McCarthy would make football history by winning the league championship with Orlando Pirates in South Africa. This meant McCarthy was the first South African footballer to win three league titles with three different football clubs on two different continents.
McCarthy, who is affectionately known as "Big Brother" by the Orlando Pirates faithful, was handed a red card for dissent in the MTN 8 secondleg semi-final played on 25 August 2012 after he charged
Franklin Cale after a reckless challenge on
Daine Klate. This incident lead to protesting fans whom, in their view, Cale was equally guilty in the incident and should have also been shown red. McCarthy announced his retirement from professional football on 6 June 2013, aged 35.
Whitehill Welfare
On 13 July 2014, McCarthy made a guest appearance for Scottish Lowland league club
Whitehill Welfare in a pre-season friendly against a
Hamilton Academical
Hamilton Academical Football Club, often known as Hamilton Accies, or The Accies, is a Scottish association football, football club from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Hamilton, South Lanarkshire who currently compete in the Scottish Championshi ...
XI, scoring in the 14th minute and providing an assist for Whitehill Welfare player Kerr Dodds to score in the 20th minute. McCarthy has a connection with the club through one of the Whitehill players, John Hall.
International career
McCarthy made his full international debut for
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
in a friendly against the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
on 4 June 1997.
Along with veteran
Egyptian
Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt.
Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to:
Nations and ethnic groups
* Egyptians, a national group in North Africa
** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...
striker
Hossam Hassan
Hossam Hassan Hussein ( ar, حسام حسن حسين; born 10 August 1966) is an Egyptian professional football coach and former player who played as a striker. A prolific goalscorer, he is Egypt's all-time top scorer with 83 goals in 176 appea ...
, McCarthy was the joint top scorer in the
1998 African Cup of Nations
The 1998 African Cup of Nations in Burkina Faso was the 21st edition of the Africa Cup of Nations (ACN), the national football championship of Africa, administered by the Confederation of African Football (CAF). Just like in 1996, the field of ...
in Burkina Faso with seven goals, including four in 13 minutes against
Namibia
Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
. In addition, he was named Player of the Tournament.
The
1998 FIFA World Cup
The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the football world championship for men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. The country was chosen as the host nation by FIFA for the ...
in France was the first time South Africa's national football team had reached the later stages of the competition, and McCarthy was one of their key players. After a 3–0 defeat against eventual champions
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, South Africa played their second match against
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
. Trailing since the 13th minute, McCarthy tied the game at 1–1 in the 52nd minute and gave South Africa a chance for qualification after a 1–1 draw. However, the third match also ended in a draw, against
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
, which left the South Africans in third place and eliminated from the competition.
The
2002 World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams organized by ...
saw history repeating for the South Africans. After a 2–2 draw against
Paraguay
Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...
and a 1–0 victory over
Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
, McCarthy's 30th-minute equaliser in the last match against
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
was not enough, as South Africa eventually lost 3–2 and finished with another third place in the group stage.
There was often conflict over McCarthy's lack of participation in national team matches (whose interests often collide with his club's) and he actually retired from international matches after the 2002 World Cup. However, he returned to the national team in 2004 and eventually set the record for most international goals for South Africa; McCarthy's strike in the second half of a 3–0 win against Paraguay in a 2008 friendly eclipsed the previous record of 29 goals held by
Shaun Bartlett
Shaun Bartlett (born 31 October 1972) is a South African professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who is the manager of Cape Town Spurs F.C., Cape Town Spurs. During his playing career, h ...
.
Prior to the
2010 World Cup
, image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg
, size = 200px
, caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...
, held in South Africa, McCarthy announced his support for the Gun-Free World Cup campaign being run by International Action Network on Small Arms. He said, "This World Cup will be the biggest in football history and the fact that it is taking place in South Africa is a chance for us to show the world everything that is good about our country. It's great that guns will be banned from stadiums – it's going to be a fantastic party, and guns have no place in that." After struggling with his fitness and facing criticism in his nation for being overweight, McCarthy was omitted from the final South African 23-man squad for the 2010 World Cup, which was announced on 1 June 2010.
Managerial and coaching career
Hibernian
Living in
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
since 2013, McCarthy confirmed in April 2015, that he had joined the coaching staff of
Alan Stubbs
Alan Stubbs (born 6 October 1971) is an English football manager and former professional footballer
As a player he was a centre-back who played top flight football for every club he played for. He played in the Premier League with Bolton Wand ...
at Scottish club
Hibernian. Stubbs had invited McCarthy so he could just learn the coaching side of things. McCarthy knew Stubbs back from their playing days when McCarthy was at
Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...
and Stubbs was at
Everton. McCarthy said, that he was going to help out with the U20s, and assisting with the first team.
Sint-Truiden
In February 2015, he did a short internship at
Sint-Truidense VV club under
Yannick Ferrera
Yannick Ferrera y Caro (born 24 September 1980) is a Belgian professional football manager and former player who is the current manager of Cypriot club Omonia.
Club career
In his early twenties, Ferrera enjoyed a brief career as a professional ...
. On 8 September 2015, McCarthy was appointed assistant manager to manager
Chris O'Loughlin, who replaced
Yannick Ferrera
Yannick Ferrera y Caro (born 24 September 1980) is a Belgian professional football manager and former player who is the current manager of Cypriot club Omonia.
Club career
In his early twenties, Ferrera enjoyed a brief career as a professional ...
. Working his way through the different tiers of the UEFA Coaching Badges system, McCarthy met O'Loughlin.
On 20 April 2016, McCarthy stopped working with Sint-Truiden for personal reasons, after it was previously announced that his contract was not renewed.
Cape Town City
On 13 June 2017, McCarthy was unveiled as the new
Cape Town City
A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck.
History
Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. Th ...
head coach, replacing
Eric Tinkler
Eric Tinkler (born 30 July 1970) is a South African football coach and former player who manages Cape Town City.
Early and personal life
Tinkler was born in Roodepoort.
Club career
Tinkler played club football for Wits University, União de ...
, who moved to manage
SuperSport United.
McCarthy would complete his
UEFA Pro License
UEFA, the governing body for football in Europe, mandates several coaching licences for professional managers, each valid for coaching at a certain level. These include the UEFA Pro Licence, the UEFA A Licence, and the UEFA B Licence. They are is ...
while coaching City, and would win his first silverware as a coach in 2018 when he guided City to the
MTN 8
MTN 8 is the current branding for a South African soccer cup competition launched in 1972 for teams who finished in the top 8 positions of the league table of the country's preceding top-flight league (currently the DStv Premiership) season.
T ...
cup.
On 4 November 2019, McCarthy was dismissed as head coach of Cape Town City after just two wins in 18 games .
AmaZulu
On 14 December 2020, McCarthy was unveiled as the new
AmaZulu F.C.
AmaZulu Football Club (Simply often known as AmaZulu) is a South African professional soccer club based in the city of Durban in the KwaZulu Natal province, that plays in the Premier Soccer League the first-tier of South African football l ...
head coach, replacing
Ayanda Dlamini
Ayanda Dlamini (born 11 October 1984 in Ulundi, KwaZulu-Natal) is a former South African football striker. He currently coaches AmaZulu Reserve. Dlamini played for AmaZulu from 2009 to 2016. He had a brief spell at Bloemfontein Celtic from 201 ...
, who stepped down from the position on 7 December 2020. He took the club to a second-place finish in the
DStv Premiership, a record high for AmaZulu in the modern era of the game in South Africa. As a result, AmaZulu qualified for the preliminary rounds of the
2021–22 CAF Champions League
The 2021–22 CAF Champions League (known as the 2021–22 TotalEnergies CAF Champions League for sponsorship purposes) was the 58th season of Africa's premier club football tournament organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), and ...
. McCarthy led AmaZulu to the group stages of the 2021–22 CAF Champions League in their debut season before exiting the competition. McCarthy and AmaZulu parted company on 25 March 2022.
Manchester United
On 30 July 2022, McCarthy was appointed as a first-team coach at
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
.
Personal life
In 2004, McCarthy married Maria Santos from Spain. They have three daughters together: Minna, Mya and Allegra. In 2007, they separated. In May 2014, McCarthy married Scottish model Stacey Munro. Together, they have one daughter, Lima Rose and one son, Lio Romero, born in 2019.
Career statistics
Club
International
:''Scores and results list South Africa's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each McCarthy goal.''
Managerial
''As of 18 September 2021''
Honours
Player
Ajax
*
Eredivisie
The Eredivisie (; ''"Honour Division"'' or ''"Premier Division"'') is the highest level of professional football in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is c ...
:
1997–98
*
KNVB Cup
The KNVB Beker (; en, KNVB Cup), branded as the TOTO KNVB Beker for sponsorship reasons, is a competition in the Netherlands organized by the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) since 1898. It was based on the format of the English FA Cup. Ou ...
:
1997–98,
1998–99
Celta
*
UEFA Intertoto Cup
The UEFA Intertoto Cup (from la, Inter, 'between' + german: toto, 'betting pool'),Most precisely, from (football pool); cf. often abbreviated and more known in the German-speaking world as UI Cup and originally called the International Foot ...
:
2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...
Porto
*
Primeira Liga
The Primeira Liga (; English: Premier League, also written as Liga Portugal 1), also known as Liga Portugal Bwin for sponsorship reasons, is the top level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga Portugal, ...
:
2003–04,
2005–06
*
Taça de Portugal
The Taça de Portugal (; "Cup of Portugal") is an annual association football competition and the premier knockout tournament in Portuguese football. For sponsorship reasons, it has been known as Taça de Portugal Placard since the 2015–16 seaso ...
:
2005–06
*
Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira
The Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira (; English: Cândido de Oliveira Super Cup, or simply Portuguese Super Cup) is an annual Portuguese football match played since 1979 between the winners of the Portuguese League (Primeira Liga) and Portuguese ...
:
2003
File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...
,
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
*
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
:
2003–04
*
Intercontinental Cup:
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
Orlando Pirates
*
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
:
2011–12
*
MTN 8
MTN 8 is the current branding for a South African soccer cup competition launched in 1972 for teams who finished in the top 8 positions of the league table of the country's preceding top-flight league (currently the DStv Premiership) season.
T ...
:
2011
File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
*
Telkom Knockout
The Telkom Knockout was a South African professional football knockout competition which comprised the 16 teams in the South African Premier Soccer League.
The competition was established in 1982 and was first known as the Datsun Challenge. Under ...
: 2011
South Africa
*
African Cup of Nations
The Africa Cup of Nations referred to as AFCON (french: Coupe d'Afrique des Nations, sometimes referred to as CAN, or TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons), and sometimes as African Cup of Nations, is the main internati ...
runner-up:
1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...
*
Reunification Cup:
2002
File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
Individual
*
African Cup of Nations
The Africa Cup of Nations referred to as AFCON (french: Coupe d'Afrique des Nations, sometimes referred to as CAN, or TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons), and sometimes as African Cup of Nations, is the main internati ...
Best Player:
1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...
*African Cup of Nations Top Scorer:
1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...
*African Cup of Nations Team of the Tournament:
1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...
*
African Goal of the Year: 2004
*
Ajax Talent of the Year (Marco van Basten Award):
1997–98
*
SJPF Player of the Month
The SJPF Player of the Month (often called Portuguese League Player of the Month) is an association football award that recognizes the best Primeira Liga, Portuguese League player each month of the season and is conceived by the SJPF (syndicate of ...
: January 2004, May 2004, October 2004
*
Primeira Liga Top Scorer: 2003–04
*
Taça de Portugal
The Taça de Portugal (; "Cup of Portugal") is an annual association football competition and the premier knockout tournament in Portuguese football. For sponsorship reasons, it has been known as Taça de Portugal Placard since the 2015–16 seaso ...
Top Scorer: 2005–06
Manager
Cape Town City
*
MTN 8
MTN 8 is the current branding for a South African soccer cup competition launched in 1972 for teams who finished in the top 8 positions of the league table of the country's preceding top-flight league (currently the DStv Premiership) season.
T ...
:
2018
File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
In popular culture
In 1998, McCarthy collaborated with South African
kwaito
Kwaito is a music genre that emerged in Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa, during the 1990s. It is a variant of house music that features the use of African sounds and samples. Kwaito songs occur at a slower tempo range than other styles of h ...
music group
TKZee
TKZee is a South African kwaito music group formed in 1990s by three school friends, Tokollo Tshabalala, Kabelo Mabalane, and Zwai Bala. The group shot to prominence in late 1997 and early 1998 with their chart-topping singles "Phalafala" and ...
in "
Shibobo
"Shibobo" is a successful 1998 South African single by South African kwaito music group TKZee and features South African football player Benni McCarthy. It is also the title song from TKZee's second album ''Shibobo''.
The song released in the r ...
". The song released in the run-up to the 1998 World Cup in France samples greatly on "
The Final Countdown" by
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
and features McCarthy rapping part of the lyrics. He also appears in the
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
-themed music video for the song. Sales of the single topped the 100,000 mark in just over a month in South Africa, making "Shibobo" the fastest and biggest selling CD single by TKZee or other South African recording artists. The song was also a hit in other African music charts. The song enjoyed a comeback in a re-release in 2010–11.
Discography
Singles
*1998: "
Shibobo
"Shibobo" is a successful 1998 South African single by South African kwaito music group TKZee and features South African football player Benni McCarthy. It is also the title song from TKZee's second album ''Shibobo''.
The song released in the r ...
" by
TKZee
TKZee is a South African kwaito music group formed in 1990s by three school friends, Tokollo Tshabalala, Kabelo Mabalane, and Zwai Bala. The group shot to prominence in late 1997 and early 1998 with their chart-topping singles "Phalafala" and ...
featuring Benni McCarthy
Music video of "iShibobo" with TKZee feat. Benni McCarthy
]
References
External links
*
Premier League profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:McCarthy, Benni
1977 births
Living people
South African soccer players
Association football forwards
AFC Ajax players
RC Celta de Vigo players
FC Porto players
Blackburn Rovers F.C. players
West Ham United F.C. players
National First Division players
South African Premier Division players
Eredivisie players
La Liga players
Primeira Liga players
Premier League players
South Africa international soccer players
1998 FIFA World Cup players
Footballers at the 2000 Summer Olympics
Olympic soccer players of South Africa
2002 FIFA World Cup players
1998 African Cup of Nations players
2002 African Cup of Nations players
2006 Africa Cup of Nations players
South African expatriate soccer players
South African expatriate sportspeople in the Netherlands
Expatriate footballers in the Netherlands
South African expatriate sportspeople in Spain
Expatriate footballers in Spain
South African expatriate sportspeople in Portugal
Expatriate footballers in Portugal
Expatriate footballers in England
Cape Coloureds
Orlando Pirates F.C. players
UEFA Champions League winning players
Cape Town City F.C. (2016) managers
South African soccer managers
Association football coaches
Soccer players from Cape Town
Manchester United F.C. non-playing staff