'I am here to win titles‚' says Orlando Pirates coach Josef Zinnbauer

“I am here to win titles‚” new Orlando Pirates coach Josef Zinnbauer said on Monday ahead of his team's fourth match of his tenure against defending Absa Premiership champions Mamelodi Sundowns at Orlando Stadium on Wednesday night.

Zinnbauer said‚ while he might not have won a major trophy‚ he has won “titles”‚ seemingly referring to his extensive experience coaching the reserve teams of Bundesliga clubs Karlsruher and Hamburger.

“I am hungry to win titles‚” the 49-year-old German‚ whose top-flight experience came in the Bundeliga coaching Hamburger SV for six months‚ then in his last job for two seasons in Switzerland coaching St Gallen.

“I am a coach. I don’t come here and say‚ ‘OK‚ I will make a little holiday here’. I will work hard for this.

“And that’s not so I didn’t win a title. It’s not in the Bundeliga‚ but in my other clubs I won the championship not just one time.

“But it’s football. You win titles not in the first or second division – I have won a lot of titles in my career.

“I coached a Swiss club – it’s not so easy. It’s the oldest club in Europe [Founded in 1879‚ St Gallen is the oldest existing club in continental Europe]. Most people don’t know this.

“It’s not so easy. It’s a very cultured club in Switzerland. And Hamburger is the same thing.

“A lot of coaches [of Hamburger] have won titles‚ they have a lot of experience‚ we had German coaches‚ national coaches – they had a lot of experience. The club played in the Champions League‚ they won titles.

“And I think I had 24 goals scored at Hamburg – many coaches did not have 24 goals at Hamburg.

“[Current Liverpool coach] Juergen Klopp‚ I played against him [when he was] at Mainz. In this time I never gave him a chance as a good coach – now he’s the best in the world maybe.

“It’s not important if you won a title before. It’s important that you win one now‚ or whenever it comes.

“It’s the same in football – if you get results‚ you are a good coach; if you don’t have results‚ you are a bad coach.

“It’s not the quality that you produce in all your days. For you it’s the quality you have in your results‚ not my coaching [on how Zinnbauer will be judged].

“Come and look at my training sessions and my team talks‚ look at the improvement that we make and you will say‚ maybe‚ ‘Wow‚ good coach’. But when I don’t get the results‚ ‘You are a bad coach’. That’s true – that’s football.”

Zinnbauer has had a bright start at Pirates with a 3-1 home win against Black Leopards‚ 1-1 away draw against Bloemfontein Celtic and 4-1 win away against Polokwane City lifting Bucs up to sixth place in the PSL.