José Manuel Figueira (born 9 February 1982 in Crawley, England) is an English football coach of Spanish descent, who is the current manager of Northern League club Auckland United.[2] Figueira previously held notable roles as the head coach of Team Wellington, assistant coach of the New Zealand national team, and head coach of the New Zealand under-17 national team.[3][4]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | José Manuel Figueira | ||
| Date of birth | 9 February 1982 | ||
| Place of birth | Crawley, England[1] | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Years | Team | ||
| Crawley Town | |||
| Managerial career | |||
| 2008–2011 | Auckland City (youth) | ||
| 2012–2013 | New York Red Bulls (youth coach) | ||
| 2014–2016 | Central United | ||
| 2014–2015 | New Zealand U17 | ||
| 2015–2016 | Auckland City (youth) | ||
| 2016–2019 | Team Wellington | ||
| 2018–2019 | New Zealand U17 | ||
| 2018–2019 | New Zealand (assistant) | ||
| 2019–2021 | Auckland City | ||
| 2021– | Auckland United | ||
In his short managerial career, Figueira has won multiple domestic and international competitions, including the New Zealand Football Championship, OFC Champions League, OFC U-17 Championship and the National Youth League.[4][5]
Career
editBorn in Crawley to Spanish parents. Figueira initially began his career as a player, playing for the youth side of local club Crawley Town, but quit at the age of 19 to pursue a career in coaching, arriving in New Zealand in 2003 following a short stint coaching at the academy of Brighton & Hove Albion.[4][6]
Figueira was announced as head coach of the New Zealand under-17 national team in preparation for the 2015 OFC U-17 Championship; however, after winning the tournament, he was controversially sacked despite winning all seven games and lifting the title.[6][7] He was reappointed in 2018, as well as being named assistant manager to Fritz Schmid for the New Zealand senior team.[8][3] Despite a shock 5–0 loss to the Solomon Islands, Figueira and New Zealand lifted the 2018 OFC U-16 Championship title.[9][10]
In 2016, Figueira was announced as the new manager of defending ISPS Handa Premiership champions Team Wellington;[6][11] he immediately led them to another title in the 2016–17 season at his first attempt.[12] This led to him being named New Zealand Football Coach of the Year in 2017.[13] Under Figueira, Team Wellington won the 2018 OFC Champions League, qualifying the club for their first ever FIFA Club World Cup;[5] the club was knocked out on penalties to Al-Ain in the playoff round after a 3–3 draw.[14]
Honours
edit- OFC Champions League Champions (1): 2018
- New Zealand Football Championship Champions (1): 2017
- National Youth League (1): 2009
- Lotto NRFL Men's Premier Division (1): 2016
- OFC U-17 Championship (1): 2015
- OFC U-16 Championship (1): 2018
References
edit- ^ Shoot the Defence (16 November 2018). "From Crawley to Kiwi – FNX Network". Fnx.network. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
- ^ "Jose Figueira named Auckland City FC coach".
- ^ a b "New national under-17 coach Jose Figueira remains committed to Team Wellington". Stuff.co.nz. 28 January 2018. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
- ^ a b c FIFA.com. "FIFA Club World Cup UAE 2018 – News – Multi-tasking Figueira living the dream ahead of Club World Cup bow". FIFA.com. Archived from the original on 16 November 2018. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
- ^ a b "Sport: Team Wellington claim maiden OFC Champs League title | RNZ News". Radionz.co.nz. 21 May 2018. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
- ^ a b c "Team Wellington's Spanish Englishman ready to implement attacking style". Stuff.co.nz. 16 October 2016. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
- ^ "NZ Football coach never suspected players ineligible".
- ^ "NZ U-17 and U-20 Head Coaches confirmed". Nzfootball.co.nz. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
- ^ "Solo rejoice in breakthrough moment". FIFA.com. Archived from the original on 24 September 2018. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
- ^ "Sport: NZ seal seventh OFC U16 title | RNZ News". Radionz.co.nz. 24 September 2018. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
- ^ "Jose Figueira confident he has Team Wellington squad capable of defending their title". Stuff.co.nz. 22 September 2016. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
- ^ "Stirling Sports Premiership GRAND FINAL 2016/17 Team Wellington 2–1 Auckland City". YouTube. 2 April 2017. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
- ^ "NZ U-17 and U-20 Head Coaches confirmed".
- ^ Hyslop, Liam (13 December 2018). "Team Wellington suffer Club World Cup heartbreak in penalty shootout loss to Al Ain". Stuff.co.nz.