PSL club appoint former Fiorentina, Atalanta scout as head coach
Former Fiorentina and Atalanta scout Fabio Lopez has been appointed as head coach of Motsepe Foundation Championship side Pretoria Callies, FARPost has learnt.
Callies finished 14th in the second-tier league last season, three points above the relegation zone, surviving the axe to the ABC Motsepe League.
The Pretoria side was under the guidance of coach Bushy Moloi, who took over from Kwanele Kopo after his move to Chippa United.
This publication has since established that Lopez is now in charge of the club. He started training the side this week, trying to assemble a team ahead of the new season, which starts on 23 August.
WHO IS PRETORIA CALLIES NEW COACH FABIO LOPEZ?
The Italian Lopez holds a UEFA Pro Licence and has worked as a scout for Serie A sides Fiorentina and Atalanta. He has also coached the Laos and Bangladesh national teams.
The 51-year-old started as an AS Roma youth goalkeeper coach in 1996 before he became the manager in 2001. He later became a scout at Atlanta and Fiorentina.
Loez started his senior coaching career with FK Banga Gargždai from Lithuania in 2007. He also had a stint at FK Šiauliai in the same country.
Amongst other positions, Lopez has been a technical director at Sabah FC in Malaysia. He had a short stint as head coach of the Bangladesh national team in 2015. According to Transfermarket, his last job was as a coach for Dong A Thanh Hoa FC in Vietnam from 2019 to 2020.
WHAT’S NEXT FOR COACH BUSHY MOLOI, WHO HAS BEEN AT THE HELM?
According to our sources, the club has decided to keep coach Bushy Moloi to work alongside the new coach. Moloi is still a Varsity football coach and is reportedly seen as an asset to the club.
Callies lost some of the key players from last season and are in a rebuilding phase. This includes former Kaizer Chiefs striker Siphelele Mthembu who has joined Baroka FC.
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