Bhubaneswar: Odisha FC announced Friday that the club have appointed Joaquin Valerio Olivera as the goalkeeping coach and Jose Mascaros Balaguer as the strength and conditioning coach. Odisha FC have made the new appointments ahead of the eighth season of the Hero Indian Super League (Hero ISL).
After retiring from professional football, Olivera was associated with different Spanish clubs and has the UEFA ‘B’ and ‘A’ goalkeeper coach’s licence.
“I am very excited about this new project and am eager to start working. I am sure it will be a very good season and I will do my best and contribute to the club with all my experience,” Olivera said in a release after his appointment.
Balaguer joins Odisha FC with more than 20 years of experience in fitness training in football.
“I am happy to sign for Odisha FC and am looking forward to come down to India for the ISL. I am very excited for the new project and hope that we can achieve a lot for the club,” Balaguer said in the same release.
OFC head coach Kiko Ramirez expressed happiness at the two new recruitments. “Mascarós is going to help the team to be in a top condition. He has a lot of experience in top teams in the first division in Spain and with his experience he will connect quickly with the squad and make sure that they are really prepared for the competition,” Kiko said.
“Similarly, Valerio has a lot of experience working in top teams, and he has worked with Rafa Benítez. We are lucky to have both of them on board in this big project,” Kiko added.
