Bhubaneswar, Aug 13 (IANS): Odisha FC on Thursday announced the signing of former India international Steven Dias as their new Indian assistant coach ahead of the seventh edition of the Indian Super League (ISL). The 36-year-old former mid-fielder has joined the Bhubaneswar-based club on a one-year deal.

After his phenomenal playing career with the Indian national team and many reputed clubs like Air India, Mahindra United, Churchill Brothers, Delhi Dynamos, and Mumbai FC, Dias had joined Jamshedpur FC as their assistant coach last year.

Apart from the Indian assistant coach, the club has also announced the re-signing of Spanish strength and conditioning coach Joan Casanova for the upcoming season. He was also a part of the OFC coaching team under former head coach Josep Gombau.

After the signings, head coach Stuart Baxter said, "Steven has a successful playing career and the players look up to him. He will be a valuable asset for us while he develops as a coach."

"Joan gives us continuity and the players are comfortable with him and we are on the same page concerning football conditioning and recuperation."

After joining Odisha FC, Dias said: "I am looking forward to working hard with the team for positive achievement in the season ahead. Now I am just excited to get things going and meeting everyone. My sincere thanks to the management for having faith in my abilities."

Meanwhile, Joan said: "I am looking forward to work alongside Stuart and the new coaching team. It's gonna be a new experience and full of new learnings. Finally, I hope all the people in India recover fast from COVID-19 and the league can be played with guarantees."