Million dollar legend Harry Kewell: 'I will bring Hanoi FC back to its original position'

Coach Harry Kewell hopes to contribute to bringing Hanoi Club back to the top of V-League.

Coach Harry Kewell's ambition

"The interesting thing about football is that it gives you the opportunity to approach many different countries and cultures. I am grateful to football for allowing me to go to places I want to return to. Perhaps that is why my experience in Hanoi is so great. I love this place so much," Coach Harry Kewell shared as soon as he arrived in the capital to begin his journey as coach of Hanoi Club.

Hanoi FC appointed Harry Kewell as head coach from October 4, with the contract term and salary and bonuses not yet disclosed. The former Australian international is tasked with bringing Hanoi FC (currently ranked sixth with 8 points after 6 matches) back into the championship race.

Coach Harry Kewell

PHOTO: AFP

Before Harry Kewell arrived, Hanoi FC had used two coaches this season. Coach Makoto Teguramori was fired after a series of four winless matches in the V-League and the National Cup. Interim coach Yusuke Adachi (now back in the technical director position) helped the team win two and draw one to rise to mid-table.

"I am very happy to come to Hanoi FC and look forward to the challenge ahead. Hopefully we will create a great atmosphere and bring Hanoi FC back to its original position," coach Harry Kewell affirmed.

Coach Harry Kewell, born in 1978, is a familiar name to many Vietnamese football fans. In his international career, the Australian football legend has played 56 times for the national team, scored 17 goals and participated in 2 World Cups in 2006 and 2010.

Kewell, along with Tim Cahill and Mark Viduka, is the most successful Australian international in Premier League history. He played for Leeds United from 1995 to 2003, including the early 2000s when Leeds dominated the Premier League.

This was the period when Kewell was valued at 10 million euros (about 300 billion VND). Remember, 10 million euros 25 years ago was a huge number that not many stars could reach.

Need to prove more

Despite a brilliant football career, Harry Kewell is currently going through a relatively quiet coaching career.

As a coach, Kewell has coached clubs in England such as Crawley Town, Notts County, Oldham Athletic and Barnet.

Coach Kewell is ready for the challenge at Hanoi Club

PHOTO: HANOI CLUB

In 2022, he joined the coaching staff of Celtic Club (Scotland) as an assistant to coach Ange Postecoglou, before taking over as head coach of Yokohama F. Marinos in early 2024. Under his leadership, the Japanese team won the runner-up position in the 2023-2024 AFC Champions League.

"I had my first experiences (about Asian culture) when working with Asian players at Celtic, with Japanese and Korean players like Daizen Maeda, Kyogo Furuhashi, Reo Hatate and Yang Hyun-jun. They had a professional and extraordinary attitude. After that, I went to Japan to coach. I believe that a good coach needs to create an environment that makes players want to join. I will go to a place where players want to learn. In Vietnam, the players are very competitive and want to develop. I will do my best to help Hanoi FC progress," coach Harry Kewel assessed.

The former Liverpool star's debut match will be against Ninh Binh Club in round 7 of the Premier League, taking place at 7:15 p.m. on October 18 at Hang Day Stadium.

This is a very difficult match for Kewell, when Ninh Binh is flying high at the top of V-League. Although they drew both recent matches against Hai Phong (2-2) and The Cong Viettel (1-1), Ninh Binh is still a strong team, possessing great potential both financially and in terms of domestic and foreign forces.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/huyen-thoai-trieu-usd-harry-kewell-toi-se-dua-clb-ha-noi-ve-vi-the-von-co-18525100613334155.htm