Vissel Kobe appoint Skibbe to replace J-League winner Yoshida

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FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - UEFA Nations League - League C - Group 2 - Hungary v Greece - Groupama Arena, Budapest, Hungary - September 11, 2018  Greece coach Michael Skibbe before the match. REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo/File Photo

FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - UEFA Nations League - League C - Group 2 - Hungary v Greece - Groupama Arena, Budapest, Hungary - September 11, 2018 Greece coach Michael Skibbe before the match. REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo/File Photo

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Dec 14 - Former Japanese champions Vissel Kobe have appointed Germany's Michael Skibbe ‍to ​replace departing head ‍coach Takayuki Yoshida, the J-League club announced ​on ​Sunday.

Yoshida resigned at the end of the just-concluded season having previously led ‍Kobe to back-to-back J-League titles in ​2023 and ⁠2024.

Skibbe joins a Kobe side that finished fifth in 2025 after spending four seasons ​with fellow J-League outfit Sanfrecce Hiroshima.

The former midfielder ‌won the J-League ​Cup in 2022 and 2025 with Hiroshima and was twice named the J-League's manager of the season.

Kobe will return to action in February ‍when the eastern league phase of ​the Asian Champions League Elite resumes with ​the club in first ‌place in the 12-team standings. REUTERS

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