New Delhi: Indian Super League (ISL) franchise Hyderabad FC head coach Manolo Marquez will step down from his role at the end of the ongoing 2022-23 campaign, the club confirmed on Tuesday.
The Spanish coach informed the club of his decision to leave in advance.
The 54-year-old will remain in charge of the team until the end of the current campaign, which includes the upcoming Super Cup and the playoff for a continental spot.
Marquez has been a huge success for Hyderabad FC since joining the team in August 2020. He helped the team win their first ISL title in the 2021-22 season by defeating Kerala Blasters FC in the final.
He also put Hyderabad back on the footballing map after his tremendous development of young Indian players during his three seasons at the club.
The club owner, Varun Tripuraneni, was impressed by the Spaniard’s professionalism and also with the efforts he put in for three seasons to help Hyderabad FC fight top teams consistently.
“It’s been three incredible seasons for the club under Manolo. On behalf of everyone at HFC, I would like to thank Manolo for his immense contribution, which has put the club among the best in the league,” said Hyderabad FC owner Tripuraneni in a statement.
“Manolo informed us of his decision to leave at the beginning of February itself to give us adequate time to find a suitable replacement. This shows the respect he has for the club,” he added.
Since arriving in Hyderabad in August 2020, the Spaniard has revolutionised a young squad that has improved consistently over the last three seasons, finishing 5th in 2020-21 (29 pts), 2nd in 2021-22 (38 pts), and 2nd in 2022-23 (42 pts), which is HFC’s best ever tally.
“It has been three wonderful and extraordinary seasons with Hyderabad, and for that, I thank everyone at the Club. However, the season is not over yet. We have a very important competition, the Super Cup, where we want to compete and win,” said Marquez.
As per the club, Hyderabad FC are already in the process of finalising the replacement and will announce at an appropriate time.
–IANS