Derrick Pereira was the technical director of FC Goa before becoming the head coach.
The FC Goa management has appointed Goa football legend Derrick Pereira as the head coach of the team on Tuesday, 21 December. He is FC Goa's first Indian coach in the Indian Super League.
Pereira, 59, will lead FC Goa for the rest of the eighth season of the ISL, replacing the abruptly resigned Juan Ferrando. He was earlier the Technical Director of FC Goa. FC Goa's interim manager, Clifford Miranda, will be the team's assistant manager.
About Derrick Pereira
Derrick Pereira joined the FC Goa team as an assistant coach in the 2017-18 season and was then promoted to at the beginning of the 2018-19 season.
He has also guided the youth team of FC Goa. In 2019, he was India's Under-23 coach. When he was the coach of the Mahindra United team in Mumbai, that team had won the national chain competitions. After his stint with Mahindra United, Pereira has managed Pune FC, Salgaonkar FC, DSK Shivajians, Churchill Brothers.
Speaking about the new role, 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.”
FC Goa Director of Football, Ravi Puskur, expressed his thoughts about the new coaching hire, 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.”