Former Manchester City striker Benjani Mwaruwari wishes to emulate Benni McCarthy, who has thrived in his coaching role at English Premier League giants Manchester United.
Currently based in the UK, the former Zimbabwe international and Jomo Cosmos striker has revealed that he has a few interviews lined up for coaching jobs in England.
He has his fingers crossed that he can follow in the footsteps of Bafana Bafana legend McCarthy, who is part of Erik Ten Hag's technical team at Manchester United.
"When you see one of our great players in Africa doing well, it inspires all of us and you want to be in that group as well," Mwaruwari told media after watching SuperSport United's Diski Challenge team take on Bristol City's under-21 side in their tour of the UK this week.
"Being in that group is not easy. Everyone is happy for McCarthy and he is inspiring everyone, including myself. I played in the Premier League and I want to be up there with Benni.
"The key is to keep on working harder until you get there."
Mwaruwari said he is well settled in the UK, where his 18-year-olf son Benjani Jr is on the books of English sixth-tier club Yeovil Town, having come through the junior ranks at Portsmouth.
The former Manchester City striker, who also played for top clubs in Switzerland and France before moving to England said he is working on getting his UEFA Pro Licence coaching badge.
"My family is here, so I am based here in England. I have been doing my coaching badges and I am looking for a club to coach. I had an operation (on the neck), but I have a few offers. As soon as I get better, I'll consider one or two. I have a UEFA A License, so I need to do the Pro License. I am working on it."
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Like McCarthy, who kickstarted his coaching career in his native South Africa at Cape Town City and AmaZulu, Mwaruwari also got his first high-profile coaching job in Zimbabwe's topflight league.
He was appointed head coach at ambitious Ngezi Platinum Stars in the Zimbabwean Premiership but was shown the door last year.
Mwaruwari however reckons he was not given enough time to implement his coaching philosophy by the club's leadership which instead was focused on immediate results.
"In my view, I think I did well, but football is a game of numbers. What I wanted to do didn't materialise. I needed time to do my own things, but sometimes it's different bosses and different vision," he said.
"I was meant to be given time, but it went the other way. Now I am here in England and I am trying to learn more, whether it's in the academy or in the first team as a coach or assistant coach. Hopefully I can get one of those and I will learn more," Mwaruwari added.
