Who is Kaizer Chiefs coaching target Fernando da Cruz and what is his record?

Nick Said

Fernando da Cruz was previously in charge of Mouscron in BelgiumBRUNO FAHY / BELGA MAG / BELGA VIA AFP

Multiple reports confirm that Kaizer Chiefs have opened talks with Fernando da Cruz about taking over the head coach role at the club, but who exactly is the Frenchman and what are his credentials?

AmaKhosi fans had a brief introduction to the 53-year-old at the start of the 2024/25 season when he was part of the technical team under the Tunisian Nasreddine Nabi

But despite working with the side in pre-season, he left his post before the campaign started to take up a position within the Moroccan Football Federation.

That jarring exit does not appear to have diminished Chiefs’ desire to have him involved and he could now return as the main man. So who is he?

Fernando da Cruz had various roles at French side LillePHILIPPE HUGUEN / AFP

Da Cruz never played association football professionally, but was captain of the France futsal side. He was born in France but, as his name suggests, is of Portuguese heritage.

In the past he has favoured 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 systems, which would fit into the current Chiefs model. He is known for his detailed match preparation and tactical organisation.

He started out as a scout for French Ligue 1 side Lille before later taking charge of their Under-19 side.

In 2012 he moved to Belgian side Mouscron, initially as assistant coach but then as caretaker boss after the sacking of Rachid Chihab.

He had 11 games in charge up to the end of the 2014/15 season, winning four of those (D1 L6), before taking up a role with the club’s academy.

Fernando da CruzBRUNO FAHY / BELGA MAG / BELGA VIA AFP

He went back to Lille as a scout in 2017 but was again thrust into a caretaker coach role for six matches during the 2017/18 season. He won two of those games (D1 L3).

Da Cruz was then placed in charge of the Lille B team for two seasons between 2018 and 2020, before jumping back to Mouscron for a short-lived stay in which he won none of his nine games in charge (D3 L6) and left in October 2020.

He joined Moroccan side AS FAR as technical director in July 2021 and took over the reins as coach a little over a year later.

Da Cruz had one season in charge in 2022/23 during which he won the Botola League, but was sacked when they exited the CAF Confederation Cup at the quarter-final stage, losing to USM Alger of Algeria.