Englishman Wilkins to coach Jordan national team

AMMAN — The Jordan Football Association (JFA) on Tuesday appointed Englishman Raymond Wilkins as head coach of the national team and his compatriot Francis Anthony as assistant coach.

JFA Secretary General Fadi Zreikat said the association decided to appoint Wilkins and Anthony to join the team’s mission to China, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The decision was taken under JFA President HRH Prince Ali’s directives, after the JFA executive committee had tasked him with selecting a new coach for the national team.

Last Wednesday, Prince Ali accompanied Wilkins to a training session for the team which included 24 players. 

Wilkins spoke to the national staff and asked some technical questions, Petra reported.

The JFA decided to keep the Jordanian coaching staff, which includes Ahmad Abdel Kader, Anzour Hina and Walid Mikhael, in addition to Brazilian fitness coach Manuel.

The association also provided the English coach with tapes of previous matches of the national team in the Asian and World Cup qualifiers to give him an idea about the level of the participating players.

Wilkins was a key midfielder for the England national football team during the 1980s, and enjoyed success at various clubs including Chelsea, Manchester United, Queens Park Rangers and Rangers, according to the JFA website.

As a coach, Wilkins started his career in 1994 when he became the head coach of Queens Park Rangers, leading them in 80 games until he left his post in 1996 and became the manager of Fulham.

Since leaving Fulham in 1998, Wilkins has worked as assistant coach at several clubs, including Chelsea, Watford and Milwall.