Every inch a hero

Important player: Argentine striker Luciano Figueroa (top) retired in 2015 but made a return in 2018 when JDT won their fifth Super League title.

PETALING JAYA: Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) coach Benjamin Mora paid tribute to manager and former player Luciano Figueroa for playing a key role in the team’s success.

Figueroa has been a key figure since he joined JDT in 2014. He helped them chart their Super League domination where they now have won the title for seven consecutive times.

He also guided them to lift the AFC Cup in 2015, the first South-East Asian team to do so.

The Argentine striker retired in 2015 but made a return in 2018 when they won their fifth title before hanging up his boots for good to take on the role of manager.

Mora said Figueroa’s appointment further galvanised the team as they continued their stranglehold in the M-League.

“The incorporation of Figueroa as manager gave us stability in the dressing room and confidence to work in a healthy environment, ” said Mora.

“I’m proud to have the opportunity to be in this marvellous club, it is a dream come true.

“I have lived my best five years in football here. I’m grateful to Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim, the team and Johor.

“I want to break records and be the best. As long as I’m here I will give everything I got to be useful to this club.”

Despite their dominance, the Mexican said JDT need to constantly re-invent themselves.

“We need to evolve, players need to bring different and better things to the team, staff and management need to work even harder from thinking up new ideas to different variants in training sessions.

“Seven titles are a lot and it’s impressive... I had the opportunity to be there in the last two, the one very important thing is that we pushed the players to think that it was the first.

“When we are leading in matches we made them think we weren’t. It is all about the mindset and the eagerness to keep on winning, creating a culture of winners and trying to be the best at all times.”