‘Strange’ situation facing Melb City in ACL Elite as former A-Leagues boss opens up on exit

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‘Strange’ situation facing Melb City in ACL Elite as former A-Leagues boss opens up on exit

There will be a familiar face in the opposition dugout when Melbourne City host Thai powerhouse Buriram United in the AFC Champions League Elite on Tuesday night.

Former Central Coast Mariners head coach Mark Jackson is the new man in charge of Buriram after leaving Gosford nine days before the start of the club’s Isuzu UTE A-League 2025-26 season.

The history-making treble-winning coach will lead Thai League 1 champions against Isuzu UTE A-League champions Melbourne City at AAMI Park on matchday three midweek, alongside a City great in Curtis Good, who is now starring for Buriram.

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“It’s a surreal moment,” Jackson told reporters in Melbourne. “But a real exciting moment for me personally to come represent my new club here in Australia. It’s a team I know really well in Melbourne City.”

Jackson enjoyed unprecedented success with the Mariners after succeeding Nick Montgomery at the start of 2023-24.

The Englishman won the Isuzu UTE A-League Premiership and Championship, as well as the AFC Cup.

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Pressed on his Mariners exit, Jackson – whose Buriram have three points from two ACL Elite fixtures – told reporters: “I enjoyed my time there.

“It’s a club that I hold dear to my heart. I had a fantastic two years there. I felt it was the right time for me to go. Everything pointed towards that. Although it was difficult, everything pointed toward another challenge.

“It was more about the challenge that awaited me. Working with a club of such stature, a squad of really, really high quality, and that kind of really enticed me into making a decision.

“There was challenges pre-season, but I want to focus on what we’re doing here now; the work I want to do with the players.

“It’s exciting for me personally, and I want it to be exciting for the players as well, to move forward and attack this Champions League.”

It’s not only surreal for Jackson but “strange” for City counterpart Aurelio Vidmar.

Vidmar went head-to-head with Jackson’s Mariners in the Isuzu UTE A-League and the Championship-winning boss is braced for a tough reunion as City look to end a run of back-to-back defeats to start their ACL Elite campaign.

“Strange situation, but it’s happening quite a bit during the course of the season when the manager is removed and the new one comes in,” said Vidmar, whose City kicked off their title defence with a 1-1 draw away to Western Sydney Wanderers.

“He’s only been there a very short time. So how much he wants to change in a short space of time? It’s totally up to him, but we’re preparing for both anyway – what he’s done against us, also last year, when he was at mariners. So if there’s any major change, won’t be too far away from what we expect.”

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