Greek Australian coach Arthur Papas is preparing to bring his talents home after resigning as head coach of Indian I-League side Dempo SC last week.
The 35-year-old decided to leave the club after three years in India.
“The decision to leave has not been an easy, and it’s one I made a month ago solely for personal reasons,” Papas said.
“I’ve had a remarkable journey in India in a number of varied and challenging roles. It’s been a great learning experience for me both in a football sense and more broadly as a life experience.”
The former Newcastle Jets assistant manager and AIS Scholarship coach was charged with a restructure of India’s youth development programs, before graduating to dual roles with the nation’s Olympic team and Pailan Arrows -the national youth team that competes in the top flight I-League.
Papas’ efforts with the Arrows saw him nominated for coach of the year honours while India’s under-22 team achieved its best ever results on the Asian stage during his tenure.
The 2011 Victorian premier league coach of the year joined Goa-based Dempo SC in 2013 and in that period guided the club to a top four finish in the league as well as reaching the semi-finals and finals of the Federation Cup in 2014 and 2015 respectively.
During his two-year stint with Dempo, Papas worked with host of young domestic talent and saw 11 of his players selected as part of India’s national team setups. He was also part of the recently completed inaugural season of the Indian Super League as assistant to Brazilian legend Zico with FC Goa.
“I’ve had a hectic, but exciting few years, and I’m looking forward to some down time at home before I take up my next football challenge,” Papas says.