Coach Matia Lule has revealed what he learnt from Frenchman Sebastien Desabre during their spell on the Uganda Cranes team.
Lule worked with Desabre as his assistant on the Cranes from 2017 to 2019 and the duo notably took Uganda Cranes to the 2019 AFCON where the side reached knockout stage for the first time since 1978.
In an interview with this website, Lule said that Desabre respected his staff and hated double-dealers.
“He hated double-dealers and used to call them snakes. He never wanted to work with people who could change the next day after agreeing on something. He was a man of his word and he never wanted empty promises. When we agreed on something, say like a certain tactic, and it fails to work, we all had to take the blame.
“Desabre was very straightforward and respected his staff. He respected time and knew when to work and joke.”
Lule revealed that he learnt about professionalism from a ” very organised” Desabre who taught him more about the new trends of modern football.
Before AFCON, there were media reports that Desabre had fallen out with his assistant Lule.
Lule lifted the lid and refuted the claims saying that the two are friends and still talk every time.
“Ever since I started to work with Sebastien, we never out, all the time we were in a professional line and both of us we were understanding everyone’s strong and weak points,” Lule commented.
“But on top of everything, Sebastien gave me his trust, and I gave him also mine. At times we reached a situation of disagreement in team selection, but we had to move on. He would credit you when a tactic worked and always wanted your input right from the time of preparations to the training on the pitch.”
On Tuesday, Desabre joined French Ligue 2 side Niort FC, his third club since leaving his role as Uganda Cranes coach last year.
Lule on the other hand, is a former National U17 team coach and has had stints with top clubs like Express FC and KCCA FC. He had a brief spell with Proline FC last season.
Slide: Matia Lule and Sebastien Desabre in pictures:
