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Cape Town - Cape Town City assistant coach Ian Taylor claims Benni McCarthy won't change much to the club's tactical philosophy, but hinted he may surprise their rivals this season.
McCarthy was appointed as Eric Tinkler's successor after his former Bafana Bafana team-mate joined SuperSport United, having led the Citizens to a third-placed finish and the Telkom Knockout title in their maiden top-flight campaign.
Taylor suggested the inexperienced coach will only make minor tweaks to the already successful set-up within the City camp.
"Benni is obviously new to coaching, so it's going to be interesting to watch him develop this season," he told IOL website. "Already, at training, we can see he is bringing in new ideas and adding something different.
"Essentially, though, things won't differ all that much from what Eric (Tinkler) did last season. While there's no real reason to change too much, under Benni there will be small tactical changes."
The Citizens recently announced their fifth and sixth signings with two local defenders added to the squad - Taariq Fielies and Craig Martin - and Taylor has backed the Capetonian youngsters to develop under the guidance of McCarthy.
"I coached Taariq when he was a junior at Ajax, so I know him quite well. He is not just a good defender, and great in the air, he is also very comfortable on the ball," Taylor added.
"He was one of the best players at Milano last season and, when he came for a trial with us, Benni was very impressed.
"Craig is a right-wingback I've been monitoring at Glendene. I initially wanted him for the Diski Team, but Benni liked what he saw, and we signed him up for the PSL squad.
"He is still raw and needs some work; he will probably play in the Diski while we watch his progress and improvement."
