Thailand

Muangthong Assistant Santi Chaiyaphuak Set To Take Leave

SCG Muangthong United assistant coach Santi Chaiyaphuak is set to take a leave of absence from the club, as reported by Thai Football website Buaksib.

The website reported that Santi, who took up the reigns as a caretaker manager for the club earlier in the season, has temporarily called time on his career at the club after turning down an opportunity to be the head coach of the club’s academy teams. It is believed that he will be taking time off with his family.

Many fans believed that he was in the running to replace title-winning coach Totchtawan Sripan after his resignation in March, after leading the side to a seven-game unbeaten run under his management, including two wins and five draws.

However, Muangthong chose to hire former Serbia National Team coach Radovan Curcic in April. Under this new setup, Santi remained as a member of the coaching staff after Curcic’s appointment, and it is believed that he left the club entirely on his own accord.

Santi has been at Muangthong United since 2012 and has worked in various roles and capacities as part of the club’s coaching staff.

The four-time Thai League champions currently sit in fourth place, having been eliminated from both domestic cup competitions, making qualification to the AFC Champions League a rather unlikely aspiration.