Just hours after leaving Malaysia, Peter Cklamovski is appointed manager of English League Two side Salford City.
JUST hours after the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) confirmed Peter Cklamovski’s departure as Harimau Malaya head coach, English League Two club Salford City announced today that the Australian had been appointed as its new manager.
Salford City is owned by former Manchester United stars David Beckham and Gary Neville, while fellow United legend Paul Scholes serves as the club’s chief advisor.
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In a statement on Salford City’s official website, Cklamovski expressed excitement about the challenge ahead.
“I’m here with a great opportunity to do something special, and it’s a great challenge. The owners have got lofty ambitions, the club’s got big aspirations to achieve something special and that resonates with me.
“The way to do that and achieve success is together, and working hard on a daily basis together to grow the football club, and I’m looking forward to getting started on that.
“We want to build a mentality around the game where we fight for everything with passion, commitment, discipline, but get on the ball, be brave, be committed, and have that forward intent to score goals.
“We want to be aggressive, attacking, and we want to get our fans off their seats, get them jumping. That style is built off a daily process on the training pitch and a really clear training methodology that the players will enjoy, but work hard for and have that mindset to get better every day.
“I’m really passionate about that and the way we do that is do that together. That’s everyone at the Club, all the fans behind the players, and together we can achieve something special,” Cklamovski stated.
Scholes welcomed the appointment, highlighting the Australian’s football philosophy.
“Peter (Cklamovski) brings a style of football that we like to watch; exciting, attacking football. But he’s not just about scoring goals, he’s obsessed with keeping clean sheets too.
“He wants his teams to be ruthless and to have a clear identity, and that’s something that we’re excited to bring to the club,” he said.
Earlier on Thursday, FAM confirmed the departures of both Cklamovski and national Under-23 head coach Nafuzi Zain as part of a wider restructuring exercise within the national team setup.
The exits leave Malaysian football facing a race against time to rebuild its coaching structure ahead of several major regional competitions, including the Asean Championship, which begins on July 24.
In a farewell message, Cklamovski thanked those involved with the national team and explained his decision to move on. He also voiced his belief in the future of Malaysian football.
FAM had earlier confirmed the contract of national team chief executive officer (CEO), Robert Douglas Friend, better known as Rob Friend, was terminated through mutual agreement effective June 1.
The contracts of Cklamovski and two senior squad technical staff members, Matthew Smith and Seiya Imazaki, were also terminated by mutual agreement, effective June 16.
FAM also informed that the contracts of Nafuzi Zain and goalkeeper coach, Mohd Yazid Mohd Yassin, were terminated through mutual agreement, effective June 15.
The association stated that further developments regarding the national team management will be announced from time to time.
