Former England top-flight footballer Peter Bulter was fired as coach of South African club Platinum Stars this weekend after losing his two matches in charge.
The ex-West Ham United and West Bromwich Albion midfielder is the third victim of early season blood-letting in the richest African football league.
AmaZulu ditched Zimbabwean Joey Antipas after a pre-season friendly defeat and Northern Ireland-born Sammy Troughton survived just two matches at Free State Stars.
With prize money unrivalled in Africa at stake, there is immense pressure on the 16 South African elite league coaches to deliver good results.
Butler, an abrasive 51-year-old, was a surprise choice by Platinum having achieved little success in four years as Botswana coach.
He arrived in South Africa under a cloud with the media quickly reminding him of his critical tweets several years ago about football in the republic.
Butler said the football produced by South African clubs was no better than that of lower-division English clubs.
And after Platinum lost 2-0 at home to Maritzburg United and 3-1 away to Cape Town City, media knives were sharpened.
“Peter Butler is out of his depth,” wrote The New Age daily. “He should have been an assistant rather than a head coach.”
His replacement at bottom-of-the-table Platinum is former South Africa goalkeeper Roger de Sa, a 52-year-old who has coached five other Premiership clubs.
The highlight of his coaching career was guiding Orlando Pirates to the 2013 CAF Champions League final won by Al Ahly of Egypt.
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