KOCHI: Ian Andrew Gillan, the 58-year-old Scottish-born Australian, has been named the head coach of Calicut FC, the Kozhikode-based franchise in the newly established Super League Kerala.
Gillan has more than 25 years of experience with various clubs and holds an AFC A license. He has coached various football clubs in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Australia, and England. His last contract was as the head coach of Lalitpur City FC in Nepal.
Former U21 national player and head coach of the U16 national women’s team, Biby Thomas Muttath, has been appointed as Gillan’s deputy. The 46-year-old Biby, who hails from Thrissur, was one of the selectors of the Kerala state team for the Santosh Trophy National Football Championship 2023-24.
“Gillan is an internationally acclaimed football coach and will add firepower to the team with his enormous skill and experience as a coach, manager, and technical director," said the franchise owner VK Mathews.
The Super League Kerala will start in September with 6 teams from Kozhikode, Kannur, Malappuram, Thrissur, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram vying for the Rs 1.50 crore prize money. There will be 30 matches at the league stage followed by the semi-finals and finals in October.
Calicut FC will have a total strength of 25 players including 6 overseas players, 9 national players and the rest from Kerala. The home ground of the Calicut FC is the Kozhikode Corporation stadium where they will play five matches.
