Odisha FC have appointed Spanish manager Kiko Ramírez as the new head coach ahead of the 2021-22 ISL season.
A youth academy product of Spanish sports club Gimnàstic Tarragona based in the port city of Tarragona, Ramírez went on to represent the club at the senior level as a forward and also managed the youth and senior level teams at the club when he took up coaching. He also turned up for Spanish clubs CE Sabadell FC, Málaga CF, UE Tàrrega and Novelda CF over the course of his career in the lower divisions of Spanish football.
The now 51-year-old Kiko started his managerial career at Gimnàstic in 2002 as an assistant coach and later on was in charge of the youth teams at the club. In 2010, he moved to CF Pobla de Mafumet who now compete in the Tercera División (now, the fifth tier league in Spain).
After a couple of years, he took over the reins of the senior team at Gimnàstic in 2012. He was sacked a few months after a poor return of one win in nine matches. Over the next few years, Ramírez managed Spanish sides CE L’Hospitalet, CD Castellón, CE Sabadell FC and Polish side Wisła Kraków.
Prior to joining Odisha FC, Kiko’s last prominent role as a manager was at Greek side Xanthi FC in 2019.
A look at his managerial career since he took over the senior team at Gimnàstic sees him average 1.45 points per match from 148 games (won 59, drawn 38, lost 51). He prefers to line his team up in a 4-2-3-1 formation. Kiko will be team up with former Valencia CF youth coach Joaquin Garcia Sánchez who joins Odisha FC as Assistant Coach and Head of Football Development.
One Comment