Former Hull City and Rangers striker Daniel Cousin is the new Gabon coach after the father of the country’s leading player, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, turned down the job.
Cousin’s appointment has been confirmed by the Gabon Football Federation (FEGAFOOT), who were last week heavily criticised by Aubameyang for the arbitrary appointment of his father Pierre Aubame as co-coach alongside Cousin.
Arsenal striker Aubameyang said his father had not agreed to the job before being announced as a national coach, was ill and did not want the job anyway, leading to an embarrassing retraction by the federation.
Aubameyang, the 2015 African Footballer of the Year, said the original announcement was “another example of the federation’s amateurism” but FEGAFOOT said they were pressured into it by the sports minister, without explaining why.
Aubame also captained the national team, was among Gabon’s first exports to French league football and has previously served as an assistant coach with the Gabon team.
Cousin replaces former Spain manager Juan Antonio Camacho, who was fired after winning just two matches in his two year spell as Gabon coach.
Cousin takes charge for the first time when Gabon face South Sudan in Libreville on Oct. 12 and the same opposition in Juba four days later, needing all six points to revive their hopes of qualifying for next year’s African Nations Cup finals.
