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Earlier today, Indian Super League (ISL) outfit Odisha FC announced the return of their former gaffer Josep Gombau to the club. The two parties have agreed to a two-year deal. Gombau returned to the club after a brief interval of two seasons.
Born in Amposta, Catalonia, Josep Gombau was a goalkeeper who took up coaching at an early age of 16. After coaching youth teams in CF Amposta and RCD Espanyol, he was signed by FC Barcelona in 2003 as a youth academy coach. In 2008, he became the technical director of FCB Escola, a Barcelona youth football academy that opened at the Raffles International School in Jumeirah, Dubai.
His interest in coaching fetched him a UEFA A license by the time he was 19. Traveling around Spain and other parts of Europe to observe various coaches in action, Gombau spent six seasons working with youth teams in Barcelona. The likes of Southampton's Oriel Romeu, Wolverhampton Wanderer's Adama Traore, Hector Bellerin of Arsenal, and Monaco's Keita Balde trained under him.
The balanced conduct, and his reputation for molding young players well, make Gombau one of the standout coaches in the ISL.
Upon returning to Odisha FC, Gombau said:
"After 2 years, the team will return to Odisha. We are back home. We have the responsibility to make the fans who come to the Kalinga Stadium enjoy our football. We will need the support of all the fans. Ama Team. Ama Game."
Odisha FC look to progress further than last season's achievements
The Juggernauts showed improvement in the previous edition of the tournament. They finished seventh with 23 points, stunning sides like Bengaluru FC, Mumbai City FC and NorthEast United FC.
They have onboarded the likes of Michael Soosairaj and Narender Gahlot to strengthen the squad.
