Niko Kovač named best coach in Ligue 1 in France
- by croatiaweek
- in Sport
Former Croatia and Bayern Munich manager Niko Kovač has been named the best coach in Ligue 1 in France for the 2020/21 season by leading sports daily L’Equipe, the club has confirmed on its website.
Although Kovac did not win any trophies, Monaco finished in third place and secured a Champions League spot. They also played in the French Cup final, going down to PSG 2-0.
Kovač joined Monaco in July last year, and the Croat very quickly implemented his system and way of working, and since January they have enjoyed great success.
Kovač won 29 of a total of 44 games with Monaco as the team finished on 78 points for the season, more than Claude Puel who led the team to the 2000 title with 65 points.
Niko Kovač est l’entraineur avec la meilleure moyenne en Ligue 1 de la saison selon les notes de @lequipe.
— Kovač France 🇫🇷 (@Kovac_FR) May 28, 2021
Il devance Cristophe Galtier et Michel Der Zakarian. pic.twitter.com/nQeWVRJHPi
Lille coach, Cristophe Galtier, who won the title this season, was in second place, followed by Montpellier boss Michel Der Zakarian.
It is not Kovač’s first big recognition. In 2018 he was named coach of the year in Germany by popular German newspaper Bild after his efforts with Eintracht Frankfurt where he won the German Cup with a sensational victory in the final over favourites and league champions Bayern Munich.
Kovač made 83 appearances for Croatia during his career, scoring 14 goals. He first coached at RB Salzburg academy before taking the Croatia U-21 team.
He made the leap to the senior team, leading Croatia the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. He then managed Eintracht and won the German Cup before winning the league and cup double with Bayern Munich.
