In 2008, Da Rosa was at French side, AS Roquebrune-Cap-Martin and 15 years later, he had traversed the length and breadth of the football landscape, landing in Gaborone to take up the Zebras gig. Around 8pm on Tuesday, Da Rosa's assignment number 18 folded in abrupt but satisfying circumstances. Hours later, he was heading straight to job 19, this time up north in Libya with Al-Ahly Tripoli. The Frenchman arrived as a largely anonymous touchline technician to take up the Zebras post at the height of the energy-sapping heat waves of October 2023.
He had been handpicked to succeed Mogomotsi 'Teenage' Mpote as repair works to fix a Zebras side that had lost its bearings and failed to yield results. However, Da Rosa touched down amidst concerns over his nomadic tendencies that had seen the 55-year-old check in and out across continents. His coaching journey has taken him to Europe, Asia, and Africa and references keep piling on his curriculum vitae. Da Rosa has literally turned into a journeyman, struggling to stitch together longer spells in charge. “When you coach a big club or a national team, the expectations are very high. The job is very demanding and for sure when you lose once or twice, things can be difficult. But I am not a voyager or a traveller. I want to be at a place where I can be comfortable,” he said. “I stayed two years in Niger, Ethiopia, and Cameroon. It is my wish to be in one country for two, three, or four years so that I can work on something. I hope the leaders will give me time to showcase my capabilities,” the 55-year-old told MmegiSport immediately after taking up the Zebras role last year. Da Rosa's stay was met with resistance particularly in the corridors of the Ministry of Youth, Gender, Sport, and Culture after Minister Tumiso Rakgare did not sanction funds to pay the coach. Rakgare had preferred the appointment of a local, and the development came amidst frosty relations between the Botswana Football Association (BFA) and the minister.
In addition, Da Rosa was operating on short-term contracts and reportedly felt unwanted particularly after the new administration came into office. Amidst the off-the-field distractions, Da Rosa did his all to stay laser-focused on his Botswana assignment. He began a topsy-turvy tenure with a 3-2 home loss to Mozambique in a World Cup qualifier. His next home game provided his most significant moment as his charges managed to beat fancied West Africans, Guinea 1-0. But it was back to the default setting when the Zebras lost their next World Cup qualifier 1-0 away to Uganda as his potpourri of results persisted. The coach recorded his second victory when the Zebras beat Ethiopia in a World Cup qualifier played in Mozambique. At the COSAFA Cup tournament held in South Africa in June, Da Rosa failed to win a single match as the insipid Zebras drew with Eswatini and South Africa, before falling 3-1 to Mozambique in the final group stage match. In six official matches, Da Rosa had won only twice and it got worse when he lost in quick succession to Mauritania and Egypt last month as his Africa Cup of Nations campaign got off to the worst possible start. Although there was no talk of the axe, Da Rosa was a coach living under bubbling pressure after the man who brought him to the local shores, Maclean Letshwiti, suffered defeat during the September 14 BFA elections. However, there was a drastic twist in Da Rosa's fortunes when, against the odds, he led the Zebras to a significant 1-0 victory over Cape Verde, which revived what was up to that point, a comatose AFCON campaign.
He followed it with a campaign-defining win with a similar margin over the same opponents in Francistown on Tuesday. He became an instant hero with only a second qualification to the AFCON finals now firmly in sight. But the coach's next move was unexpected. Da Rosa dropped a bombshell right before journalists attending a post-match conference that he was quitting his job with immediate effect. Soon after, links with Al-Ahly Tripoli emerged. The coach decried that he was not consulted on some key decisions, including the Zebras opting out of the African Nations Championships (CHAN). A few hours later, he was signing contract documents as the new Al-Ahly Tripoli coach and his Zebras chapter had been firmly shut and left behind. Whilst his departure left a bitter aftertaste, his tenure will now be remembered for the double kick the Zebras delivered against Cape Verde. Those two consequential kicks are now the reason why there is overflowing optimism running through the veins of the blue, black, and white nation's supporters that a second AFCON finals appearance is within touching distance.
