Gallants Coach Opens Up On Coaching Credentials, Early Retirement
Newly appointed Marumo Gallants coach Alexandre Lafitte has addressed the question marks over his coaching credentials and the reason why he opted to quit playing football to venture into a coaching career at a young age.
The French tactician rose to prominence in Africa with Stade d’Abidjan of Ivory Coast, where he was appointed in January 2023 to make global history as the youngest top-flight coach in world football at the age of 25.
Lafitte guided the Ivorian outfit to the CAF Champions League group stages last season but failed to progress to the knockout stages. Moreover, the 28-year-old mentor helped d’Abidjan to a first league title in 56 years before departing the club for a new challenge.
With uncertainty over his capabilities to coach in the lucrative Betway Premiership, the UEFA Pro License holder opened up on his coaching background, revealing that he has accumulated a vast amount of experience in top European countries.
“I played football when I was young. I stopped at 18 years of age, and after that, I began coaching at 18 years old. I did sports in university, and I developed my methodology in different countries like France, Belgium, Spain, and Portugal,” Lafitte said.
“I developed different abilities in management, and everything. After that, I had different experiences as an assistant coach in different divisions in France and at Paris FC. I coached at different clubs in France as a young coach, including Paris-Saint Germain (PSG).
“After that, I began [to be a sole head coach] in Ivory Coast in January 2023, and we accumulated good experience because we won the league title in Ivory Coast, and we played in the group stages of the CAF Champions League.”
Lafitte clarified the factors behind the decision to hang up his boots at a tender age, in favour of pursuing a career in the dugout. In addition to drawing inspiration from his father, the Frenchman admitted to not having enough talent to make it big as a footballer.
“For me, I didn’t have the talent to play in the top leagues, and I don’t have the ambition to play in the fourth division in France, and my father was a coach in table tennis, and with imitation, I developed a passion for coaching,” he added.
“When I was young, I was a captain of the team I played for, and for me it was my objective to become a coach because I am ambitious. So, for that, I preferred to begin the journey to become a head coach of a football club.”
It remains to be seen how Lafitte will fare in his new project as Gallants’ boss Sello Abraham gave him a mandate of bettering the team’s performance in the 2024/25 campaign, where they finished in position 10 on the log standings and reached the Nedbank Cup and Carling Knockout Cup semi-finals.
