FC Goa on Tuesday announced the appointment of Derrick Pereira as the club’s new head coach for the ongoing Hero Indian Super League (ISL) season.
Pereira, who is currently with the Club as its Technical Director had taken charge of the Gaurs along with Clifford Miranda and Roma Cunillera during the fag end of the 2019/20 season after the departure of Sergio Lobera.
The former Indian international during his little time at the helm of the Gaurs, took the side to finish top of the ISL table at the end of the 2018-19 league table – paving the way for FC Goa’s qualification for group stages of the 2021 AFC Champions League.
The 59-year-old has the extensive experience of working with the majority of players from the present FC Goa squad. A number of them have played under him in his stints before FC Goa while many more come through the youth ranks under his guidance.
Speaking of the task ahead, new FC Goa head coach Derrick Pereira said: “It is a great honour to become head coach of a club I have been part of for so many years. It is a very proud day for both me and my family.
“This is a wonderful opportunity, but there is also a lot of work ahead of us and I am eager to get onto the training ground to start working with the players. I would like to thank the club management for this opportunity and thank the club’s supporters for the incredible welcome they have already given me. I am very excited to begin our journey together,” he added.
Speaking on the appointment, FC Goa’s Director of Football, Ravi Puskur said: “We’re pleased to announce that Derrick has taken over as the Head Coach of the team. He’s been ingrained into the fabric of the club and is well versed with our players and staff with a vast majority of them having worked with him.”
“He will settle into the day to day workings of the team seamlessly and we’re certain he’ll continue to push our brand of football. A Goan taking over FC Goa is the perfect representation of what we believe in and we’re confident he will make his mark on this team and will continue to push the team towards its objectives,” he added.
Derrick Pereira has been with the club since 2017, serving as the Assistant Coach in 2017-18 before taking up the role of the Technical Director at the beginning of the 2018-19 season.
Notably, the development comes after Juan Ferrando had stepped down as the chief coach of the club.
Speaking on Ferrando’s departure, Director of Football, Ravi Puskur had said: “We’re very disappointed to lose Juan. His decision to leave the club was rather unexpected and came as a surprise, particularly at this juncture of the season, where we are in the middle of the season.”
“We’re particularly disappointed that we were kept in the dark until yesterday morning where he communicated his desire to leave the club. However, once he stated his stance and the release clause was activated, we were left with little alternative. I wish Juan the best for his future,” he had added.
Ferrando, in his only full season with FC Goa in 2020-21 guided the Gaurs to the semifinals of the ISL. He was also in charge of the Club during their maiden and historic continental voyage in the AFC Champions League, where they finished third in Group E.
On the other hand, Pereira headed FC Goa’s Youth Development, with three of his teams finishing as Champions. He was also in charge of the India U23 team in 2019.
He has previously managed Mahindra United, winning the National Football League in his maiden season. That established him as one of the premier coaches of the country as he went on to manage Pune FC, Salgaocar, DSK Shivajians and Churchill Brothers.