On Tuesday, Odisha FC of the Indian Super League (ISL) announced the hiring of former India midfielder Clifford Miranda as their assistant coach. Beginning July 1, the 39-year-old will be a member of head coach Josep Gombau’s backroom staff.
From 2000 through 2015, Miranda primarily represented Dempo in the I-League and the National Football League. Miranda earned five league titles and the Federation Cup in 2004 while playing for the Goan team. He also contributed to the club’s four domestic cup victories.
From 2005 until 2014, the footballer represented India at the international level, garnering 45 caps and tallying six goals. He was a member of the Indian side that won the AFC Challenge Cup in 2008. Two SAFF Championships were also won by him.
He began his career with Salcete FC before transferring to Jamshedpur’s esteemed Tata Football Academy, where he spent four years honing his abilities. When Miranda signed for Dempo, a team in the second division, in 2000, he was the only TFA graduate from his class to do so. He was selected to play for Atlético de Kolkata in July 2015.
Derrick Pereira, Miranda’s former coach, persuaded him to transition into teaching when he stopped playing football in 2017. He joined FC Goa, where he had previously played, as Pereira’s assistant for the club’s reserve squad.
2018 saw Miranda take over as the team’s head coach in both the I-League 2nd Division and the Goa Professional League. Later, he was employed by FC Goa.
Prasanta Patnaik