Champion ousted by Rui Costa faces new challenge after Benfica exit | OneFootball

After leaving Benfica at the start of the 2024/25 season, the future of Roger Schmidt will not be on the pitch, but rather behind a desk. According to reports, the former national champion with the Eagles has accepted an invitation from the Japanese football league, where he will take on duties not as a coach, but as a consultant.

The news was reported by the newspaper Record on the morning of Wednesday, October 1, after the J League, the top division of Japanese football, revealed that the 58-year-old former manager will be the league’s consultant regarding global football dynamics, with the aim of advising on the training of future local talents.

In a statement, the top officials of the J League highlighted the work the coach has done throughout his professional career: "Vast experience as a coach at top European clubs, providing training to academy players, seminars for coaches and sporting directors, and also with the J League and the J League clubs themselves".

Furthermore, the same source reports that Schmidt, who was responsible for the departure of Marcos Leonardo from Clube da Luz, who has been shining at Al Hilal, will also observe and coordinate the work carried out by Japan’s under-16 and under-18 teams, in order to help develop the athletes who are part of these teams.

After the announcement from the Japanese league, the 58-year-old German made a point of expressing his gratitude for the professional opportunity: "I truly feel honored to have been appointed Global Football Advisor to the J League. When I met President Nonomura in Düsseldorf in July this year, I realized that we shared the same vision and growth strategy for the J League, which led me to decide to take part in this ambitious project".

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.