Former Kaizer Chiefs and Sekhukhune United midfielder Willard Katsande says he has no regrets after coaching three different clubs in what turned out to be a nomadic season in Zimbabwe.
Katsande started the 2026 season at Rangers FC in March, then moved to Grand Legacy FC after 54 days. He finished the season at FC Oden, a roller coaster journey he describes as fantastic despite the big challenges.
“I don’t think I regret a second of the time that I spent in any of those teams,” Katsande told FARPost. “There’s nothing that beats it, especially if you’re a young and ambitious coach. You wake up every morning to go to training sessions, match days, to know that you’re just going to witness what we’ve been training [for].”
KATSANDE’S DIFFICULT START AT RANGERS FC
However, Katsande admitted to FARPost that his first job in Zimbabwe at Rangers FC was the hardest because he was still learning Zimbabwean football. Rangers were competing in the Northern Region Soccer League.
“It was challenging to get into Zimbabwean football after a long time in SA. You don’t know exactly what it is when it comes to coaching,” he declared. “Luckily I found good players at Rangers. They managed to execute what I wanted to achieve with them, and you could see it in the way we ended up leaving them. They were playing good, fantastic football.”
At Grand Legacy FC, who play in the Eastern Region Soccer League, Katsande says he found a different group but got the same response from the players.
“As a coach, you are there to improve the players. So when the players improve, the team improves. When the team improves, the team wins,” he added. “I took charge of 13 games there. We lost two, drew one, and won ten. So that was a good, fantastic run.”
He left mid-season after failing to reach an agreement with management on technical issues. His final stop was FC Oden, where he says the players and board quickly bought into his philosophy.
‘I IMPROVED HUMAN BEINGS’ – WILLARD KATSANDE
His first game was against Scottland FC, in the Munhumutapa Challenge Cup, the rising powerhouse of Zimbabwean football at the moment. In the end, Katsande led FC Oden to a fourth-place finish in the Northern Region Soccer League.
“When I took over, the team was number 12 on the log, and when I left, they were number four. My duty as a coach is this: when the group improves, the team improves; that’s a success. I didn’t only improve football players. I improved even human beings, even management, to also take part, to be their life coach. Outside football, they can open up to talk to you about certain things where they just need your advice.”
Asked about his next step after leaving FC Oden, Katsande made a clear statement of intent about his future.
“My goal, I made it clear to everybody that I need to be in the PSL. I don’t know when, but I just need to be in the PSL, and after the PSL I just need to be national team coach in 2030,” he said.
“And those are the short-term goals I’ve given myself, and long-term goals, of course, are about taking my national team to the [FIFA] World Cup. It’s possible.
“I’m a guy who challenges himself; even in my playing career, where I come from, it was a matter of challenging myself until I managed to make it to the top.”
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