DRC: Michel Preud’homme to lead Leopards?

The Democratic Republic of Congo, two-time winners of the African Cup of Nations (1968 and 1974), will not participate in the next edition in Cameroon. The Congolese Football Federation is said to be on the point of appointing Michel Preud’homme, former coach of Standard Liege, to take over the Leopards for the qualifiers for the 2022 Qatar World Cup, which will start in June.

The Leopards were eliminated in the CAN qualifiers for the first time in ten years. This setback cost Christian N’Sengi and his staff their jobs. In order to prepare the Leopards for the next round, the Congolese Football Federation (FECOFA) is looking for a new coach. According to the Belgian media Het Laaste Neuws, the choice would be Michel Preud’homme, former coach of Standard de Liège (Belgian D1).

According to the information of this media, taken up by RTBF, the proposal has already been made. But Michel Preud’homme, 62, who retired last year, is also being courted by other clubs in the Middle East and Europe. So he has a choice to make. Michel Preud’homme has coached several Congolese players in Belgium, such as Paul-José Mpoku, Merveille Bope and Christian Luyindama.

Regularly announced as the head of the Belgian Red Devils, Michel Preud’homme has never managed a national team. The challenge offered to « MPH » is interesting with the DRC. He should get the team back on track and try to qualify for the 2022 World Cup. The Leopards are in group J, together with Tanzania, Benin and Madagascar.