Singapore: The Football Association of Singapore (FAS) announced Tatsuma Yoshida as the new head coach of the national team on Thursday.
Yoshida was a former professional footballer for J.League club Kashiwa Reysol from 1993 to 1996, before moving to Kyoto Purple Sanga for two years. In 1999, he had a stint with Montedio Yamagata.
The 44-year-old coach is no stranger to Singapore, as he spent a short time playing for Jurong FC in 2002, before suffering an injury-ending career, thus shifting his focus to coaching.
Yoshida returned to Japan to further develop his managerial role with the youths of Kashiwa Reysol, and was eventually promoted to head coach of the club in 2015, leading the club to a quarter-final finish in the 2015 AFC Champions League.
His latest roles at the helm includes Albirex Niigata and Ventforet Kofu in 2016 and 2017 respectively.
Yoshida’s first task will be to prepare his team for two friendly matches with Northern Mariana Islands and Myanmar on June 8 and 11 respectively, ahead of their FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and AFC Asian Cup 2023 Joint Preliminary Qualifiers.
Tatsuma takes charge of the Lions! ??? #ONESTRONG #WelcomeTatsuma https://t.co/p6F3fb9VIJ pic.twitter.com/1qksQJGpLe
— FAS (@FASingapore) May 30, 2019
In a press conference at the Jalan Besar Stadium, FAS President Lim Kia Tong delivered the opening speech, saying: “Yoshida’s experience with youth development was a key factor that the selection committee and I took into consideration.
“We needed someone who has the technical ability to develop the skill-set of our youth footballers, the future national team, and the ability to influence the mentality of our senior players to ignite their desire to fight and win, and to be exemplary models for the younger players.
“In addition to his experience, Yoshida brings with him the exemplary attitude, strict discipline and hardwork that the Japanese are known for.
"We are convinced he is the right person for the job, and we are confident that he will be able to bring about the fast intensity and fast-moving football style that both we and the fans are looking for.”
Source: the-afc.com