The Football Kenya Federation (FKF) has responded to the incessant rumours associating Benni McCarthy with a shock exit.

McCarthy was appointed in early March as the new Harambee Stars coach on a two-year contract, but within less than three months, rumours from his native South Africa have linked him to a possible exit.

The former Bafana Bafana striker has been linked with the vacant Orlando Pirates job. Jose Riveiro will leave the club this season and is expected to be unveiled as the new Al Ahly coach.

The Buccaneers are in the hunt for a new coach, and as history shows, McCarthy's name is always among the potential names every time there is a huge vacancy in the Premier Soccer League (PSL).

Their Soweto rivals Kaizer Chiefs could also be looking for a new coach. Nassredine Nabi broke the club's 10-year trophy drought over the weekend when he won the Nedbank Cup.

Despite this, the owners were said to be considering a change before the marketing director, Jessica Motaung, came out to deny the rumours.

FKF's head of communication, Jeff Kinyanjui, told a South African publication that the reports linking McCarthy to an early exit were unfounded.

"Benni is still contracted to the Football Kenya Federation as the Harambee Stars coach. No, we haven’t received anything, Benni is contracted to the FKF," he told Kickoff.

The all-time South Africa striker has always been unfazed by the constant rumours. In a past interview, he revealed that Pirates had approached him but were wary of his experience as a manager.

"There was a chance once upon a time, way before Jose Riveiro came to Pirates. I did speak with the chairman [Dr Irvin Khoza]. It was almost a done deal; it was kind of me going back to coach the Orlando Pirates. But I think the chairman at the last minute decided to go for someone with more experience because, like I said, I didn’t have a lot of coaching experience back then," via IOL.

Raphael Abiola, a journalist specialising in PSL matters, doesn't think it is a good idea for McCarthy to quit Kenya, no matter how big the allure of moving back home is.

"I think there are a couple of reports linking McCarthy back to the Premier Soccer League with the two Soweto giants, Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs, at the forefront," he told

"Even with Pirates' job being an exciting one for McCarthy as they are his former club, I don't think it's the right time for him to return to the PSL, after all he has promised to achieve with the Kenyan national team."

Abiola adds that McCarthy taking Kenya to the Africa Cup of Nations will be a bigger achievement than coaching Pirates.

"He needs to do something outside South Africa; the homecoming can still wait, because he will definitely find a good club to join when he's done with the Harambee Stars.

"Qualifying Kenya for the next AFCON would be a major addition to his coaching CV, and I know he has eyes for the Bafana Bafana job too; he just needs to come correct with the Harambee Stars' job, then he can consider returning home afterwards."

McCarthy's goalkeeping coach, Moeneeb Josephs, waded into the topic with a series of tweets.

The former Orlando Pirates goalkeeper moved to Kenya to work alongside McCarthy, but hasn't shied away from supporting his love for his former club.

Josephs responded to fans' questions on X who wanted to know whether the Bucs rumours were true.

Source: TUKO.co.ke