Southeast Asia

SEA Awards – Coach of the Year

By: , October 18, 2018 6:38 pm

For our penultimate category at the 2018 SEA Awards, we look at the best head coach from each respective league.

Thailand

Presented by Obb Deewajin

Milos Joksic - Nakhon Ratchasima FC

Most people, if not all, had the "Swatcats" as their main contender for relegation when the Thai league announced that 5 teams would face the drop this season. However, against all odds, Joksic took one of the top division's least affluent clubs to their best ever league finish, while also reaching the League Cup semi-final for the first time in 4 years along the way. Continuity is the Serbian's secret to success. He was kept on as head coach after a comfortable 12th place last season and was allowed to mould the side into one of the hardest teams to beat in the country. With a blend of experience veterans and young hardworking players, Joksic's side is extremely well organized, with only the top three sides in the table conceding fewer goals than them. The fact that they finished 7th despite being the division's second-worst scoring team is down to the concentration and discipline instilled by our Coach of the Year.

 

Honorable Mentions

2 - Bozidar Bandovic (Buriram United): The Montenegrin coach retained the league title at Buriram United, finishing 16 points clear with only one home defeat this season. The "Thunder Castle" also had a run of 15 straight wins and broke the record points total.

3 - Mano Polking (Bangkok United): There were massive changes at the start of the season for Bangkok United as they parted ways with three key players. Amazingly, coach Polking was able to create a new team, finishing as runners up while playing truly breathtaking football.

Vietnam

Presented by Tran Tien

Nguyen Duc Thang - FLC Thanh Hoa

The young coach took charge of FLC Thanh Hoa from the 1st of May when the club were in crisis after sacking coach Mihail Marian. He has guided the team from bottom half of the table to eventually finish in a highly impressive second place. Furthermore, the team also made it to the final of the National Cup.

 

Honorable Mentions

2 - Chu Dinh Nghiem (Hanoi FC): The coach guided his team to dominate the league by sealing the title 5 rounds before the league's conclusion

3 - Nguyen Duc Thang (Song Lam Nghe An): At the start of the season, SLNA has faced many difficulties and dropped to relegation zone after the first period of the league. However, coach Nguyen Duc Thang made some changes to help the team win eight matches in a row, eventually coming fourth in the final league standings.

Malaysia

Presented by Aiman Nazirmuddin

Mehmet Duraković - Perak FA

Durakovic earned his current position at Perak FA after the contract termination of its former head coach, Karl-Heinz Weigang. Durakovic managed to bring Perak FA to become the runners-up in this season in Malaysian Super League, as well as qualidy for the quarter-finals of the 2018 Malaysian Cup. He was also responsible for bringing in Brazilian star Wander Luiz, who had a major impact on the side by scoring 7 goals in 22 apps for Perak.

 

 

Honorable Mentions

2 - Raúl Marcos Longhi Aizpún (Johor Darul Ta'zim): Longhi held the position as caretaker head coach for Johor Darul Ta'zim after the resignation of Ulisses Morais. Under Longhi, Johor Darul Ta'zim won the 2018 Malaysia Super League title, which was their fifth consecutive league triumph. In August 2018, Longhi was released along with his two assistants in a management restructuring, after his team fell to a 2–1 defeat to Malaysia Premier League side MISC-MIFA at home in the first match of the 2018 Malaysia Cup.

3 - K. Rajagopal (PKNS): K. Rajagobal is a former head coach for Malaysia national football team and the under-23 football team. Currently he is the head coach of PKNS FC. The club are evidently happy with their performance under the former national tea boss this season as they have reached both the FA Cup and Malaysia semi-finals, as will achieving their highest ever finish by coming third in the Super League.