Manolo Márquez to continue as FC Goa Head Coach for the 2025-26 Season
FC Goa is delighted to announce that Manolo Márquez has signed on to continue as Head Coach of the club for the 2025-26 season. After leading the Gaurs through two successful campaigns, the Spanish tactician will remain at the helm for a third season, reaffirming the club’s commitment to consistency, ambition, and growth.
“I am very satisfied to join FC Goa for a third season. I was very happy during the previous two seasons, where the team showed consistent improvement each year. The level of organisation that the club operates with is not commonly observed in Indian club football, making FC Goa a very special club,” Manolo Márquez said when speaking of his return to Goa. “It was clear for me that if I were to continue in India, it had to be with FC Goa,” he added.
The Spaniard initially signed for the club in 2023 on a two-year deal, and since has become the longest serving Head Coach of the Gaurs, with a campaign spanning 62 matches across all competitions.
He begins his third season at FC Goa with a desire to maintain a successful record, not only taking the club further in Indian football, but Asian football as well, thanks to the win in the Kalinga Super Sup last season. For his first assignment, he will be leading the club in the preliminary stage of the AFC Champions League 2, against Omani Professional League team, Al-Seeb Club, where FC Goa will play host at Fatorda on the 13th of August.
On Márquez’s extension, Ravi Puskur, FC Goa’s CEO said, “When the opportunity arose to bring Manolo back, it was one of the most straightforward decisions we’ve had to make at the club. Over the past two seasons, he has not only delivered results but done so with a clear identity and a deep commitment to improving the group as a whole.”
Leading FC Goa to two back-to-back semi-final appearances in the ISL, Manolo Márquez’s ledger is prominently marked with four consecutive playoff appearances in top-tier Indian Football, a figure that reflects his tactical brilliance. Manolo Márquez brought a unique ability to identify young talent and mould players to become extremely valuable assets for the club, bringing to the forefront players who have since gained tremendous acclaim in Indian football.
Puskar added, “Manolo’s ability to bring out the best in players — individually and collectively — along with his sincerity, work ethic, and clarity of purpose, align perfectly with the values we hold at FC Goa. In an environment where continuity and consistency are often hard to come by, Manolo represents both.
“His desire to win matches the right way, while developing talent and instilling belief in the squad, made this decision an easy one. We are delighted to welcome him back and look forward to building on the strong foundation he helped lay.” he further remarked on Márquez distinctly paving the path for a winning philosophy at the club.
Manolo Márquez unwaveringly approaches the challenge of certain key players exiting the club. “I hope that in the next season the team will again be very competitive. We have almost twenty players continuing with us from the previous season, a rare number in the current footballing world. The new faces will of course have certain adjustments to make as we cannot change what worked for us. The hope always remains that we will fight well and that the crowd will be proud of this team,” he said.
The opportunity the club has to excel at the international stage is what Márquez has set his sight on right now, saying, “It is obviously not a usual pre-season for us. Generally, you get about six to eight weeks of training before you arrive at the first ISL game in good conditions, having played multiple domestic competitions already. We are in a special situation, but a great one for us at the club where we also have the AFC match to look forward to. It will be a difficult game against Al-Seeb, but we are of course ready to play against them and the target will be to be there with our best foot forward.”
This year, joining Márquez in his coaching staff are two new members — Spaniards Marc Gamon as the Goalkeeping coach, and David Ramos as the Strength & Conditioning coach — following the departure of Asier Ray Santin and Jose Carlos Barroso. Gamon finished a two-year stint with Belgian club KMSK Deinze and reunited with Márquez last year. For the 2024-25 season Gamon was Márquez’s goalkeeping coach for the Blue Tigers. They worked together again after their time coaching Hyderabad FC in the 2020-21 season. Ramos, new to Indian football, comes with experience coaching clubs in Spain and China. The rest of his coaching staff, including Assistant Coaches Benito Montalvo and Gouramangi Singh Moirangthem, continue their roles at the club.
A state where football stands as a treasured commodity, Coach Márquez has built a deep sense of trust within the Goan community. Márquez too appreciates the relationship the fans share with FC Goa, and has credited them with being the motivational factor behind some pertinent wins for the Men in Orange, saying, “My connection with the fans has gotten better every season. The fans have been loyal even when the team went through some hard times. Their support towards the club is very big for us, and we would hope for it to continue this year for all our games.”
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