Juan Manuel Lillo

Early years and Salamanca

Born in Tolosa, Gipuzkoa, Lillo began coaching local Amaroz KE at just 16 and, four years later, he took charge of Tolosa in the Tercera División. He moved to Mirandés also in that level afterwards, and led the side to promotion to Segunda División B in the 1988–89 season, as champions. Lillo spent the 1991–92 campaign at Cultural Leonesa, advocating a 4–2–3–1 formation. He became the youngest coach to attain the national coaching badge in Spain. Lillo made his name as a manager at Salamanca, joining the club in mid-1992 at the behest of its chairman Juan José Hidalgo. In his first season he finished second in the third division, narrowly missing out on promotion playoffs which he attained the following campaign without any major squad changes. This prompted reported interest from Real Valladolid, but the coach stayed until the end of 1995–96 as they competed in La Liga– this made him the youngest ever person to manage at the highest level, at only 29; after 28 games in charge, with Salamanca four points into the relegation zone, he was dismissed, but players and fans publicly opposed the sacking, supporting him in recognition of his achievements – the team finished in last position, eleven points behind 21st-placed Mérida. Lillo then had some spells in the top division: in the 1996–97 season he worked with Real Oviedo, but was fired before its closure due to poor results. He returned to management in February 1998 with Tenerife, helping…

Mirandés

Tercera División: 1988–89 Salamanca

Segunda División B: 1993–94 Qingdao Huanghai

China League One: 2019