Former African Footballer of the Year, Emmanuel Amuneke has been unveiled as the new manager for Sudanese club Al-Khartoum Al Watani.
Amuneke led Nigeria’s Under-17s to the FIFA Under-17 World Cup title in 2015 in the South American nation, Chile and last worked as head coach of Nigeria’s Under-20 team in 2016.
The former Barcelona, Sporting Lisbon and Zamalek of Egypt player signed a 2-year deal on Tuesday and is expected to take over immediately from interim head coach Amir Abu Al Jaz who has been in charge of first team duties since Ghanaian Kwesi Appiah left the role in April this year.
Al-Khartoum have won just one of their last five matches and are currently placed sixth on the Sudan Premier League table after twenty-nine round of matches, twenty one points behind runaway league leaders Al Merreikh.
Amuneke is expected to lead his new wards out in their next league game against Hay Al Wadi away at the Nyala Stadium on Saturday.
In the long term, Amuneke’s task will be to break the duopoly of Al Hilal and Al Merreikh in the Sudanese Premier League who between them have won every league title since 1970 except in 1988 and 1992.
Al-Khartoum played in the CAF Confederation Cup in 2015 and 2016 and will be hoping that Amuneke can guide back to the continent with seven games left to play in the top flight division. They are just four points adrift of third placed Hilal Obayed who occupy the final continental position.
