The Bergara-born coach Beñat Labaien has committed to the Al-Wakrah club in Qatarfor the upcoming 2024-25 season. The former head of the analysis department at Real Sociedad from 2018 to 2022 and coach of the Japanese team Tokushima Vortis will now serve as assistant coachto the Canarian Miguel Ángel Ramírez (who managed Sporting de Gijón until last June). At 36 years old, Labaien begins a new professional chapter after his last experience in Japan: he coached Tokushima in the J2 league from January to August 2023.
Beñat joined Real Sociedad in the summer of 2018, coinciding with the pre-season in which Roberto Olabe revamped the club’s entire structure. He arrived at Zubieta from Leeds United, taking the perfect opportunity to work closer to home, leaving behind a career in which he had worked in the youth teams of Atlético de Madrid, Real Madrid, and the Spanish national team, as well as at Alcobendas, Fuenlabrada, and Elche. Within Imanol Alguacil’s coaching staff, Labaien played a key role in winning the Spanish Cup and achieving three consecutive European qualificationsuntil his departure.
Signing with Tokushima
Signing with Tokushima Tokushima Vortis approached him for the 2023 season, offering him the role of head coach, which was his true calling. His experience in Asia proved to be enriching in many ways, but the sporting results didn’t follow through. Burdened by numerous draws, his team was at the bottom of the table when, after 33 games, Labaien was replaced. Up until then, Tokushima had earned seven victories, fifteen draws, and only eleven defeats, but it was far from the promotion fight and just one point above the relegation zone.
Now, the Bergara-born coach starts a new journey with Al-Wakrah, a club currently carrying out its pre-season in Estepona (Málaga). With the summer transfer market yet to reach full swing, the Qatari club is already making moves that reflect the ambition of the project: they have recently paid €4.5 million to Union Berlin to sign Tunisian international Laïdouni. The team finished fourth in the latest edition of the QSL (Qatar Stars League) and won the cup. They will play their first official match on the weekend of August 11, marking the start of the domestic league.
Source: Noticias de Gipuzkoa