Botswana fires under-23 soccer coach ahead of Olympic qualifier

Botswana national under-23 soccer coach Keitumetse Paul was on Wednesday relieved of his duties for alleged unprofessional conduct.

Paul said on Wednesday afternoon he has been fired, but failed to comment further saying the matter was handled by his lawyers.

The news of the coach's dismissal comes just a day before Botswana plays host to Zambia in the 2015 Africa Under-23 Championship qualifiers that will also be used as qualifiers for the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Several hours before, the coach addressed a pre-match conference where he said taking away five key players in the final days of preparations disrupted his plans for the game against Zambia.

Five key players were called up to the senior team this week and traveled with the team to South Africa for the 2015 Confederation of Southern Africa Football Associations (COSAFA) regional tournament.

He said he had already called replacements but his plans remained ruined as it will take some time for new players to gel into the team.

Paul recently oversaw Botswana eliminate Kenya in the first preliminary match of the qualifiers through a 4-4 draw. The young zebras beat Kenya 3-0 at home before losing 4-1 away a fortnight ago, but proceeded through away goal rule.

The coach however expressed unhappiness at the way the Botswana Football Association treated him in the build up to the Friday tie against Zambia.

The BFA is yet to announce Paul's replacement with the game only a day away. Paul was also an assistant coach for the senior team coached by Peter Butler, a role he has also been relieved of.

Meanwhile Botswana women's team will play Kenya in the Olympic qualifier first leg match on Friday. The match is part of a double tie in the town of Lobatse and will precede the tie between Botswana and Zambia under-23. Endite