Abhinav Kumar Singh 
Hyderabad FC have appointed highly experienced Spaniard Manuel ‘Manolo’ Márquez as the new head coach, the club announced on Monday. Manuel Márquez will replace Albert Roca, who has left Hyderabad FC to join the FC Barcelona newly appointed manager Ronald Koeman’s staff.
The 51-year-old Spaniard who previously worked at the helm in the Spanish La Liga and the Croatian top-flight has penned a one-year deal till the end of the 2020-21 season.
“It’s a big challenge for me to join Hyderabad FC as we are set to begin our season soon. The club has already been preparing and working on a lot of things over the last few months, so that makes it a comparatively smoother process for me to settle in,” said Marquez after completing formalities.
“Given that Hyderabad FC intends to follow the same philosophy which I’ve worked with over so many years, I believe there are common goals already present. Now it’s just about hitting the ground running and imparting those ideologies to the players,” he added.
Hyderabad FC co-owner Varun Tripuraneni said, “We’ve worked towards a unified goal over the last seven-eight months while building our team. It has been one of our top priorities to continue the good work that everyone has put in, and we strongly believe that Manuel Márquez is the perfect choice to do that. He has the credentials, and more importantly, the experience to fit into our club. He has consistently proven himself at various levels and we expect a seamless transition.”
Manuel Márquez had worked closely with several top La Liga coaches in current CD Leganes manager Javier Aguirre and former Barcelona and Real Betis coach Quique Setién, Márquez strongly believes in and is eager to continue the philosophy that HFC has been working on since the start of 2020.
A defender by trade, Manuel, the Barcelona native, turned out for various sides in the Spanish leagues, before hanging up his boots at 28. During his two-decade-long coaching career, Márquez has worked with the likes of PB Anguera, AE Prat, CE Europa, CF Badalona, RCD Espanyol B, UE Sant Andreu, and UD Las Palmas B in the Spanish league system.
Manuel Márquez took charge of La Liga side UD Las Palmas in 2017 before working with Croatian top-flight side NK Istra 1961 in 2018.
