Pablo Franco's delayed arrival raises doubts within Esperance

Pablo Franco's delayed arrival in Tunisia has sparked controversy among Espérance Sportive de Tunis fans, after more than three days have passed since reaching a preliminary agreement with the club's management to take over the coaching responsibilities, succeeding Romanian Laurențiu Reghecampf.

Rigecamf, 51, has decided to leave Espérance after just four matches into the Tunisian Professional League season 2026-2027, following an offer to coach FCSB in Romania. The club will now begin the search for a new manager to lead the team in the local league, Tunisian Cup, and CAF Champions League.

Esperance's management, led by Hamdi Meddeb, has reached an agreement with Pablo Franco, who previously managed MAS Fes during the 2025-2026 season and won the Moroccan league title with them, to start his duties with the team at the end of this week, after being officially presented to the media and outlining his plans and goals with the 'Red and Yellow'.

Sources close to the club reported last Saturday that Franco will arrive in Tunisia on Sunday, in preparation for the upcoming match against Olympique Béja, scheduled for Saturday, October 10, before facing Al-Suwaihli from Libya in the CAF Champions League.

However, the Spanish coach has not yet arrived in Tunisia, despite surpassing the scheduled arrival time by more than 48 hours, which has opened the door to questions from Esperance fans regarding the fate of the preliminary agreement and the truth about his taking on the team's technical responsibility.

Conflicting reports have emerged regarding Franco's potential withdrawal from coaching Espérance, due to disagreements over his annual salary and his refusal to allow a Tunisian assistant coach into his staff. These issues have been said to threaten the initial agreement between the two parties.

Meanwhile, a source close to Espérance has reported that Franco requested a two-day extension from the club's management to remain in Spain and finalize some family affairs before heading to Tunisia. These developments have not prevented the club's fans from raising widespread questions about the reasons for the delay in the official announcement regarding the contract and the formation of the coaching staff.

According to exclusive sources, Esperance is waiting for Franco to arrive tomorrow, Wednesday, as it is the final deadline to complete the agreement and officially announce his appointment as the team's coach. If this does not happen, the club's management will look for a new coach to lead the team in the upcoming phase.