Spanish Garrido unveiled as new Persepolis coach
Spanish Juan Carlos Garrido has been named as the new head coach of the Persian Gulf Pro League champion Persepolis.
“Welcome to the Red Army Juan Carlos Garrido,” the club wrote on X on Tuesday as the 55-year-old Spaniard is to arrive in Tehran in the coming days to sign his contract.
A former manager of La Liga sides Villarreal and Real Betis, as well as Club Brugge in Belgium, Garrido replaces Brazilian interim coach Osmar Loss Vieira, who refused to take the Reds’ permanent role despite leading the club to a seventh top-flight crown in eight years earlier in the month as he decided to move back to his home country to be close to his family.
Garrido’s appointment ends weeks of rumors and speculation swirling around the Persepolis bench, during which several names were brought up in the media for the job – including ex-Napoli boss Walter Mazzarri, Dutch coach John van ‘t Schip, and Croatian Dragan Skocic.
Garrido led USM Alger to the fourth place in the Algerian top division in the newly-finished campaign and is no stranger to working in the Middle East as Persepolis will be his 10th club in the MENA region over the past decade.
Having started his professional career as a manager with CD Onda in the Spanish fourth-tier league, the Valencia-born guided Villarreal to a fourth-spot finish in La Liga and a Champions League qualification in his first full season in charge in 2011, while lifting the CAF Confederation Cup trophy on a couple of occasions with Egyptian giant Al Ahly (2014) and Moroccan side Raja Casablanca (2018).