Former Thai national coach extends contract with V. League club

Kiatisuk will receive a salary of $700,000 for two more years at HAGL. In the contract, there’s no requirement that he must win a V. League title with the club.

Kiatisuk “Zico” Senamuang, 47, was a legendary Thai striker. During his 18-year career, Kiatisuk scored 251 goals in 339 appearances. He used to play for HAGL from 2002 to 2006, helping the Central Highlands club be promoted to V. League 1, then winning the title in 2003 and 2004. In 2006, he coached and played for the club at the same time and retired at the end of the season.

In 2010, he returned to coach HAGL but failed to achieve good results. After, Kiatisuk returned to Thailand to coach local clubs like Chula United and Bangkok United, then managed the Thai national team from 2013 to 2017, helping them advance to the final round of 2018 World Cup qualifiers and winning the 2016 AFF Cup, before resigning due to disagreement with the Football Association of Thailand.

Kiatisuk returned to HAGL in 2021 and helped the club top the table after 12 rounds but the V. League was canceled due to Covid-19. In the 2022 season, he failed to repeat the success of the previous season as the club drastically dropped their form and finished seventh overall.

However, the club still decided to keep Kiatisuk for two more seasons.