Football
Nick Said, Special to ESPN 7y

Eric Tinkler walks out on Cape Town City, SuperSport next

Eric Tinkler has walked out on South African Premier Soccer League side Cape Town City and is set to be unveiled as the new coach of SuperSport United.

City confirmed that Tinkler had "broken his three-year contract" after just a season in charge, in which he led the side to a surprise third-place finish in the league as well as the Telkom Knockout trophy when they beat, ironically, SuperSport in the Final in December.

Although there has been no official word that Tinkler will join Matsatsantsa, the club have called a 15:00 (CAT) press conference on Thursday for a "formal announcement", and numerous sources have confirmed that Tinkler will be their coach.

"CTCFC is saddened to announce that coach Eric Tinkler has broken his three-year contract, just weeks before pre-season," a terse statement from City read on Thursday. "He exits the club, after just one season, by his choice through a buyout clause.

"The club management, players, fans and entire city of Cape Town are as determined as ever to show resolve and stand up for our footballing vision."

City have revealed that they already have a preferred candidate identified, and with confirmation that former Orlando Pirates coach and Dutch national team legend Ruud Krol was in Cape Town this week, it has fuelled speculation that he could be set to take over.

"The club has been overwhelmed by the interest in the position, but one true candidate has emerged. We will be announcing the new CTCFC head coach within the next seven days," City said.

Tinkler takes the next step in his coaching career and back into a pressurised role at a Gauteng team where expectations are high. After spending more than a decade as assistant coach at Bidvest Wits, he was handed the reins of Pirates for an 18-month spell that included two cup finals, one of them the CAF Confederation Cup, but no trophies.

His contract was not renewed at the end of the 2015/16 season, leaving him to take over at City when Muhsin Ertugral replaced him at Pirates.

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