In an interview with NTV on a Monday night, the head coach of Harambee Stars, Benni McCarthy, was asked about his thoughts on the match-fixing scandal that emerged two weeks ago involving Patrick Matasi.
McCarthy strongly disapproved of the situation, saying that there is no place for betting or match-fixing in football. He emphasized that it is unthinkable for a player to betray everything they have worked for by gambling on losing a match. The South African coach expressed relief that he had never encountered the player involved.
“For me, there is no room for betting or throwing any game. To be in your position and betray everything you’ve built by gambling on losing a football game is unthinkable. I am glad I never crossed paths with this player,” McCarthy stated.
He continued,
“I have no sympathy for him, and I don’t care what punishment he receives. I just hope the authorities pursue those who drew him into this in the first place, because we don’t need this kind of behavior in football.”
The former Manchester United manager said that if someone truly loves football, they would never even consider taking money to lose a match.
“If you’re genuinely a footballer who loves the game, you would never think about accepting money to lose,” he added.
“We want a clean sport—one that unites people from all over the world. So why would anyone want to tarnish that by making it corrupt? I have no sympathy for what he did, and it’s heartbreaking to see something like this happen in our game. However, I’m thankful that I was never the coach who had to rely on that goalkeeper,” McCarthy concluded.
