Ethiopia’s Wubetu Abate hopes to power team of veterans to a CAN renaissance
[ad_1]
Issued on: Modified:
Footballing glory has evaded Ethiopia ever since they won the Africa Cup of Nations (CAN) on home soil in 1962. But after a sparkling run of form in the qualifiers, manager Wubetu Abate is determined to gift them a renaissance as they head to this year’s tournament in Cameroon.
Ethiopia’s fortunes spent a long time in the doldrums after winning the 1962 Africa Cup of Nations on home soil: They went more than three decades without qualifying until CAN-2013, where they failed to get out of the group stage.
After impressing in Ethiopian club football – crowned by his role guiding Ethiopia Bunna to the 2010-11 Ethiopian Premier League crown, the only time they have ever won the title – Wubetu Abate was drafted in to step up national team ambitions in September 2020. The country’s football federation didn’t renew previous manager Abraham Mebratu’s contract amid a poor run of form.
Abate enjoyed a brief spell as a player at Pulp and Worket before injury forced him to hang up his boots and turn to management. An acclaimed track record at minor club Adama City landed Abate a string of jobs coaching more prestigious teams. He joined Debedit in 2007 before winning himself national renown as Ethiopia Bunna boss.
‘It was a dream for me’
“I like challenges and enjoy them,” Abate told journalists when he took charge of the Ethiopian national side. “I face many challenges in my coaching career. The higher the risk, the higher the reward. It was a dream for me to manage the Ethiopian national team. Surprisingly, the dream has come true, and I hope to achieve good results during my spell.”
The Ethiopian Football Federation gave Abate two objectives when they made him manager: Qualify for CAN-2022 and get into the third round of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.
Abate achieved the first…
[ad_2]
Source : france24
