The former Pakhtakor player first arrived at the club in 2004 for a brief spell as manager, before filling in at various roles - including as a sport director and assistant manager. Since 2016, he has been the club head coach, leading them to back-to-back Uzbek League titles.
One of the youngest clubs in this year’s AFC Champions League, Lokomotiv were only established in 2002, but are already rivalling the likes of Pakhtakor for domestic supremacy and have also made large strides on the continental stage.
Miklyaev credits hard work in the early years of the club’s existence for their emergence as a new powerhouse.
“I am very happy to be a part of a club like Lokomotiv. Working in this club is a huge privilege for any coach. We are now reaping the rewards of years of hard work and sacrifice,” the 50-years-old told the-AFC.com.
The hard work doesn’t stop though, as Miklyaev aims to deliver more silverware for the fans after bringing the club their first ever titles in the form of two consecutive league-and-cup doubles.
“In the upcoming years, I hope that we will give the fans plenty to celebrate. We will keep working hard and try to be top again, so that our fans can be proud of the club.”
Miklyaev’s methods changed the club’s fortunes - having competed in the second tier of Uzbek football as recent as in 2011 - and he describes himself as a hands-off type of manager when it comes to matchdays.
“I believe I am a ‘teacher with a whistle’, I teach during the week, and let the boys play on game day. There are often some adjustments to make, but I am not one who gets up on the side line to yell and scream at our players. I believe in doing the work, teaching, then the match is a player’s game. They will do well if I prepared them properly.”
Properly prepares is how Miklyaev wants his players to be ahead of a sixth consecutive AFC Champions League campaign where Lokomotiv will be hoping to better the quarter-final finish of 2016. Even more, they want to do it in style.
“We are very ambitious, and we will invest all of our ambitions into beautiful, quality football. We want to go as far as possible in the Champions League and want to keep dreaming,"
The Tashkent-based side will see their ambitions tested by three strong opponents in Group B, with Qatar’s Al Duhail, UAE’s Al Wahda and IR Iran’s Zobahan. The Lokomotiv boss delivered his judgement on the three sides.
“All three teams are physically strong. Al Duhail play in a very disciplined way. Al Wahda are a team with players who battle really hard, with a lot of spirit, while Zobahan are doing very good work in improving their football.”
Photos: Lokomotiv Tashkent
