New Yokohama F. Marinos manager Erick Mombaerts says his players have exceeded expectations after one week on the job, and is determined to make a swift start to the 2015 J. League season.
Frenchman Mombaerts started work in Yokohama this week after City Football Group (CFG), the owner of Premier League champions Manchester City which bought a 20 percent stake in Marinos last May, helped the club recruit a successor to Yasuhiro Higuchi at the end of last season.
The 59-year-old Mombaerts was chosen from a list of around 20 names drawn up by CFG, and comes to the job with a wealth of experience from stints in charge of France's Under-21s and club sides including Toulouse, Paris Saint-Germain and Le Havre.