AFC Champions League Elite
Hasebe, who was named the J.League’s Manager of the Year for 2023, takes over after Oniki ended a hugely successful eight-year spell with the club at the conclusion of the 2024 J1 League season to join Kashima Antlers ahead of next season.
Kawasaki are currently fourth in the eastern standings of the continental competition, one point adrift of leaders Yokohama F. Marinos with matches against Pohang Steelers and Central Coast Mariners to be played on February 11 and 18 respectively.
Victory over Pohang on Matchday Seven will see Kawasaki qualify for the competition’s last 16.
Hasebe replaces the club’s most successful head coach, with Oniki having led Kawasaki to the J1 League title in 2017, 2018, 2020 and 2021 while also winning the Emperor’s Cup in 2020 and 2023.
Kawasaki’s best performance in the AFC Champions League™ under Oniki came in 2017, when they reached the quarter-finals.
Hasebe returns to Todoroki Stadium after spending a solitary season with the team as a player in 1997 having also had spells with Verdy Kawasaki, Vissel Kobe and JEF United Ichihara.
He started his coaching career Mito Hollyhock before taking over as Fukuoka coach in 2020, earning promotion to J1 in his first season and winning the J.League Cup, the club’s first major honour, in 2023.
Photo: AFP
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