The Erik ten Hag revolution is in full swing at Manchester United, and there is a familiar name working behind the scenes at Old Trafford that perhaps isn’t getting much attention.
Benni McCarthy is best known for his time at Porto under Jose Mourinho and for playing in the Premier League with Blackburn Rovers. The South African striker scored 25 goals in 47 matches across all competitions to help Porto win the Champions League in 2003/04 and went on to score 37 goals in 120 appearances in the Premier League.
He ended his career with a forgettable spell at West Ham, before going into coaching. The 45-year-old worked at Hibernian in Scotland and in his native South Africa with Cape Town City and AmaZulu, before being brought to Old Trafford by Ten Hag.
With United enjoying a period of good form under the Dutchman, now is a good time to reflect on McCarthy’s life and career.
Married Miss Edinburgh
McCarthy started his career in South Africa before making his name with two years at Dutch giants Ajax. From there he went to Iberia, with a stint at Celta Vigo in Spain leading to his big break with Porto in neighbouring Portugal.
During this time, McCarthy met his first wife, Maria Santos. The couple married in 2004 and had three children together before separating in 2007.
He was to meet his current wife, Stacey Munro, during the filming of an advert for Nike in the Scottish city of Edinburgh in 2008.
“I went there on a shoot and she was one of those pretty girls they have as extras,” he has explained. “I couldn’t concentrate on what I was supposed to do.”
Stacey worked as a model and won the Miss Edinburgh beauty competition. They were married in May 2014, with Stacey then taking McCarthy’s name at a ceremony in Scotland which saw the striker’s friends and family fly in from South Africa.
McCarthy embraced Scottish culture by wearing a kilt for the occasion. The couple have two children together.
Weight issues
McCarthy was always good at finding the back of the net throughout his career – but he has struggled with his weight at times. After a successful spell with Blackburn, he joined West Ham on January transfer deadline day in 2010. It did not go to plan.
Despite signing a two-and-a-half-year contract, he made just 14 appearances for the club. At the heart of the issue was his weight, with manager Avram Grant unhappy with his size.
Grant arrived at West Ham in the summer of 2010 and challenged the 33-year-old McCarthy to lose 2.2lb in six weeks, or else face a fine of one week's wages each time he failed.
At the time, McCarthy was 15st and had a body fat percentage of 24.2 – way above what is expected of a professional athlete. He eventually reached his weight target of 13st 5lb in October – but only after incurring huge fines.
He was earning £38,000 per week at the time, meaning his five fines cost him a whopping £200,000 in total. To make matters worse, when Grant came to name his 25-man squad for the second half of the Premier League season, he did not include McCarthy – because he was now too skinny.
“He reached the targets but I think that affected his movement,” Grant said. “He's a very good player and one of the best finishers in training that I have ever seen, and I have had some good players. But now we need players with movement and the advantage of being quick, and we have others.”
Helping Rashford
Fast-forward to the present day and McCarthy does not have to worry about his weight. He is working for United as a first-team coach, focusing on the team’s strikers.
It is something of a dream job for McCarthy, who grew up as a United fan.
“I am delighted to be here and I hope to make a real difference to United this season,” he told MUTV upon his arrival in the summer. "There is no bigger stage than this. To be here is a privilege and the smallest chance that these players get should be grabbed with both hands.”
Speaking at a fans’ question and answer session in January, Ten Hag explained why he wanted McCarthy on his staff. “In our coaching staff, we had a lot of defenders and midfield players," Ten Hag said.
"I wanted, also, to find a good balance. He is offensive [minded] as he is a former striker and that is also a really specific job task in the team. I never played there, so I’m [always] lucky to have someone in my staff who played there.”
McCarthy is known for his positive outlook, which has helped United’s forwards bond as a group. His role has been focused on ensuring United’s strikers are in tip-top shape.
In August he told SuperSport of his role: "Coordinating movements and finishing and making sure that the guys are sharp and that they’re ready and that the goalscoring continues and that they get the right goal scoring boots on. That will be my function.”
He is clearly having an impact, with United clicking nicely in front of goal. Marcus Rashford, in particular, has been on fire and is enjoying the best form of his career since returning from the World Cup.
