Latest news with #InigoCalderon
South China Morning Post
21-07-2025
- Sport
- South China Morning Post
Ex-Brighton defender Calderon juggles Kitchee demands, stress of Hong Kong school system
More familiar with the inner workings of English football, Inigo Calderon has been juggling a crash course in the game in Hong Kong with the 'more stressful' task of trying to find schools for his two young children. The former Brighton & Hove Albion defender was made Kitchee head coach on July 4, exactly two months after being sacked from his job with Bristol Rovers, who were relegated to League Two in April. With his family based in England, the 43-year-old initially felt the move east was 'too far', but after talking to people in the city, he changed his mind. 'Sometimes, you need the challenge of a change,' Calderon added. The Spaniard quit playing in early 2019, after 18 months with Chennaiyin in India. He lived apart from his family during that time, something he did not want to experience again. Inigo Calderon is in his second senior head coach role after leaving Bristol Rovers. Photo: Edmond So So, with a mix of 'excitement and anxiety', they are swapping Brighton for Hong Kong, once he has found a suitable school for his children.
South China Morning Post
04-07-2025
- Sport
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong giants Kitchee appoint former Brighton defender as head coach
Former Brighton & Hove Albion defender Inigo Calderon has been tasked with returning the good times to Kitchee after he was appointed head coach of the Hong Kong giants. Advertisement Kitchee have been searching for a new boss since it was confirmed in April that Edgar Cardoso would leave after delivering the club's first trophyless season since 2009-10. It is believed John Morling, technical director of the Football Association of Hong Kong, China (HKFA), and a former Brighton academy manager, helped broker the deal. Calderon recently had four months in charge of Bristol Rovers, but the 43-year-old was sacked in May following the club's relegation from League One. He played more than 230 games in 6½ years with Brighton and won promotion to the Championship soon after joining from Alaves in January 2010. Advertisement Brighton reached the Championship play-offs on three separate occasions, losing in the semi-finals each time during Calderon's time on the south coast.
BBC News
15-05-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Clarke has 'unfinished business' at Rovers
New Bristol Rovers head coach Darrell Clarke says he has "unfinished business" with the club after being reappointed seven years after he left the was announced as the successor to Inigo Calderon, who was sacked following Rovers' final game of the season and their relegation to League previously spent four years at the club, between 2014 and 2018, during which time he guided them to promotion from the National League up to League One."I know there'll be some people out there thinking you should never go back, but I look at this as unfinished business," Clarke told BBC Radio Bristol's Having a Gas show."I was fortunate to be here for four-and half years. The last year didn't work out as well as I'd have liked it to."It's also appreciating this football club now has put a lot more investment into the playing budget, the facilities."I never got that when we finished 10th and 13th in League One with probably half of what the playing budget is now."To be able to go to a place where I'm going to be backed, and with the potential this massive football club's got, was a massive influence for me." Clarke said he was returning to the Memorial Stadium not for "sentimental" reason but to win."I like to think they know now my heart's in the right place and I will be doing my upmost to make sure we bring success to the football club first and foremost," he he comes into a club that have endured a torrid season, dropping back to the fourth tier having lost 27 of their 46 matches, including winning just three times away from admitted a "hell of a lot of work" was needed this summer with the players still under contract and that he had brought the start of pre-season training forward."We're making sure the players that are still going to be with me when pre-season starts, they understand exactly what is going to be expected of them," he explained."I'd give everybody a chance but they have to be on board otherwise they'll fall by the wayside."There has also been suggestions of disruption behind the scenes from previous managers, with Lee Cattermole being appointed briefly to the coaching staff behind former manager Matt Taylor's back, while Calderon said when he arrived in December there "were a lot of bad things that weren't because of the previous manager".Clarke said: "There has been a lot of noise and you hear the rumours, but from me coming back here the non-negotiable was that we look after the football side of things." Clarke has managed Walsall, Port Vale, Cheltenham and most recently Barnsley, who he left in March, since he left 47-year-old said he has not changed during that time but has "got better"."Attention to detail even more so, you learn, I'm still doing a leadership course with LMA (League Manager's Association) that's funded by the Premier League - I want to still learn and keep getting better, and better and better," he said. "There's more pressure on me now - I put the most pressure on myself, I was the same first time around as I am now - and that pressure's going to be to perform and give the club and the fans a team they can be proud of."
The Irish Sun
04-05-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
EFL club sack manager after horror run of just one point in their final 10 games
BRISTOL ROVERS have confirmed that Ingo Calderon has been sacked. The EFL outfit swung the axe on the manager less than 24 hours following the end of the League One season. 1 Bristol Rovers have sacked Inigo Calderon Credit: PA Calderon, 43, oversaw a disastrous end of the season that saw the club win just ONE POINT in their final ten games. The Spaniard was only appointed in December having signed a two-and-a-half-year deal. However following relegation to League Two he has been sacked by the club. A statement read: "Bristol Rovers can confirm that Inigo Calderon has departed his position as Men's first team Head Coach. READ MORE ON FOOTBALL "Miguel Llera, who has been assisting in the coaching department since March, has also left the Club. "Everyone at Bristol Rovers would like to thank Inigo and Miguel for their hard work, dedication and commitment and wish them both every success in their respective future careers. "A thorough process to recruit a replacement is underway and the club will be making no further comment at this time." Calderon has also released his own statement following the decision. Most read in EFL He insisted that it was a "true honour" to lead the club and paid tribute to the fans. He wrote: "This is my time as Bristol Rovers manager. "It has been a true honour and pleasure to have been part of this great club, obviously without the results I would have liked and that this club deserves, but still the pride and clear conscience of having tried everything possible to achieve the best. "Boxing Day at Exeter, the first home game on New Year's Day, my family celebrating from the stands, the first win at Cambridge, the unconditional support in away games, and especially the games played at the Mem are unforgettable moments that I will always remember. "I've always said that a club is made great by the fans and the people who work behind the scenes, and this club is giant. "It's a time for unity. I can only reiterate my gratitude to the entire Gasheads family, fans, players, staff, board. Now more than ever." More to follow... THIS IS A DEVELOPING STORY.. The Sun is your go to destination for the best football, boxing and MMA news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures and must-see video . Like us on Facebook at
Yahoo
04-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Calderon sacked after Bristol Rovers' relegation
Bristol Rovers have sacked head coach Inigo Calderon following the team's relegation from League One. Burton's draw with Wigan on Tuesday confirmed Rovers' return to League Two following two seasons in the third tier. His final game in charge was a 4-1 defeat by Blackpool on Saturday, a ninth loss in 10 matches to end the campaign. First-team coach Miguel Llera has also left The Memorial Stadium. Calderon was appointed on Boxing Day but Rovers only won six of his 26 games in charge and they finished 22nd in the table. The former Brighton & Hove Albion defender was appointed on a two-and-a-half-year deal in December, with the club 19th in the table and three points above the drop zone, but he failed to steer them to safety. The Bristol Rovers job was Calderon's first in a first-team managerial role, with the 43-year-old previously being manager of Brighton's under-18s team. In early March, back-to-back wins against Huddersfield and Bolton saw Rovers move nine points clear of the relegation zone, but a torrid run of eight defeats in nine games followed to drop them into the bottom four. Calderon took over from Matt Taylor, who was sacked in early December after a year in the job. However, the issues that Taylor's team struggled with at the start of the campaign persisted under Calderon, particularly scoring goals and away form. Rovers' tally of 44 goals scored is the fourth-lowest in the division - with 25 scored during Calderon's tenure - and the manager's plight was not helped by the loss of strikers Chris Martin and Promise Omochere to season-ending injuries in early March. The club also sit bottom of the table for away results, having won only three times on the road. Under Calderon there was only one away win in 12 matches, with just four goals scored. Calderon had consistently been honest in his assessment of the side and last month said the team were playing like "a League Two side". "It's been difficult. We knew it was my first chance in senior management and the fact I am not getting success has been frustrating for me," Calderon said following their defeat by Reading. "But at the same time I sleep well in terms of I think I am trying to do everything possible - you cannot imagine the hours I try to put in to make this team stay in this division. It still hasn't been enough so maybe I have to do better, 100% I have to do better." Ed Hadwin, BBC Radio Bristol commentator Inigo Calderon's short tenure as Rovers' head coach has been a difficult one for him. He was so excited to get the chance of his first senior job in football management he spent Christmas away from his family in Spain to prepare. And while there were definitely some games where he - and the team - showed some real promise (back-to-back wins over Huddersfield and Bolton in a run of five home wins in eight games) their awful finish to the season sealed his fate. He certainly made mistakes during that time, with some of his substitutions leaving fans scratching their heads. But potentially the biggest issues he's faced weren't of his making. Rovers' owner, Hussain AlSaeed, told us this season's playing budget is the largest in the club's history, and while plenty of the players recruited in the summer are undoubtedly talented, the blend of a lot of youngsters and a handful of very senior players wasn't right. Then in January, with all his senior strikers having had significant injury issues, they didn't sign an experienced player as cover. And with just five goals scored in their past 10 games, that decision probably cost Calderon his job and Rovers their place in League One.
