Khalid Abdulrahman Ibrahim Al-Koroni (Arabic: خالد عبد الرحمن ابراهيم القروني; born 31 December 1959) is a Saudi Arabian professional football coach and former player who played for Al-Riyadh.[2][3]
Playing career
Having made his debut during the 1977–78 season, Al-Koroni spent his whole playing career with hometown club Al-Riyadh. In his first season with the club, they managed to get promoted to the 1978–79 Saudi Premier League and reached the final of 1978 King Cup. During his playing career, Al-Koroni managed to get promoted to the Premier League four times with Al-Riyadh.[4]
Managerial career
1990–1999
In 1991, Al-Koroni announced his retirement and was appointed as assistant manager of Al-Riyadh. In 1992, Al-Koroni was appointed as caretaker before returning to his previous post following the appointment of Zé Mário.[4]
On 6 December 1997, Al-Koroni was appointed as Al-Riyadh's manager until the end of the season following the sacking of Jean-Michel Cavalli.[5] At the time of his appointment, Al-Riyadh sat at tenth with only 8 points picked up from 10 games. Al-Riyadh's form started to improve and Al-Koroni managed to lead Al-Riyadh to ninth, 4 points off the relegation zone. Al-Koroni also managed to lead Al-Riyadh to their second Crown Prince Cup final, when they beat Al-Shoulla in the semi-finals.[6] In the final, Al-Ahli defeated Al-Riyadh 3–2, courtesy of a golden goal.[7] After ensuring the club's survival, Al-Koroni's contract was renewed for another year.[8] On 11 February 1999, Al-Koroni announced his resignation as manager following conflicts with several players of the team.[9]
1999–2000
On 24 February 1999, Al-Koroni was appointed as the manager of Al-Tai.[10] At the time of his appointment, Al-Tai sat at ninth just four points above the relegation zone. Al-Koroni managed to finish eighth with Al-Tai and left following the expiration of his contract on 1 April 1999.
Al-Koroni was then appointed as assistant manager to Luisinho Lemos in the Saudi U23 national team.[11] On 29 August 1999, Al-Koroni was appointed as head coach of the Saudi U23 national team following the sacking of Luisinho.[12] Al-Koroni failed to qualify for the Olympics after finishing in second place, three points behind Kuwait in the qualifiers.
On 3 January 2000, Al-Koroni was appointed as the manager of Al-Shoulla until the end of the season.[13]
On 10 November 2000, Al-Koroni was appointed as the head coach of Al-Hazem.[16] On 27 March 2001, Al-Koroni resigned for personal reasons.[17]
On 1 May 2001, Al-Koroni returned to manage Al-Shoulla for a second time.[18] He managed to lead Al-Shoulla to a sixth-placed finish, their highest ever in the top flight. He left at the end of the season following the expiration of his contract.
On 21 May 2002, Al-Koroni returned to manage boyhood club Al-Riyadh for a third time.[19] On 4 October 2002, Al-Koroni was sacked by Al-Riyadh.[20]
On 8 October 2002, Al-Koroni was appointed as the manager of First Division club Al-Wehda.[21] Al-Koroni managed to lead Al-Wehda to the First Division and gain promotion to the Premier League.[22]
On 3 May 2003, Al-Koroni was loaned to Premier League side Al-Ittihad until the end of the season.[23] Al-Koroni managed to win the Premier League title after defeating Al-Ahli 3–2 in the final. He became the first manager to win both the Premier League title and First Division title in one season.[24] Al-Koroni also managed to win the 2003 Saudi-Egyptian Super Cup after defeating Ismaily 1–0 in the final.[25]
Al-Koroni left Al-Ittihad following the expiration of his loan and returned to Al-Wehda.[26]
On 2 August 2004, Al-Koroni was appointed as the manager of Al-Riyadh for the fourth time.[27] On 4 February 2005, Al-Koroni was sacked by Al-Riyadh.[28]
On 17 March 2005, Al-Koroni was appointed as the manager of First Division side Al-Hazem.[29] Al-Koroni managed to lead Al-Hazem to their first First Division title as well as gain promotion to the top flight for the first time in the club's history.[30]
2005–2014
On 14 September 2005, Al-Koroni was appointed as the manager of Al-Nassr's U20 team.[31] Following the sacking of Mariano Barreto, Al-Koroni was appointed as Al-Nassr's manager on 23 November 2005.[32] On 15 January 2006, Al-Koroni resigned from his post after a 3–0 defeat to Al-Ahli.[33]
On 12 February 2006, Al-Koroni was appointed as Al-Raed's manager until the end of the season.[34]
On 4 December 2006, Al-Koroni returned to manage Al-Tai for the second time.[35] On 1 February 2007, Al-Koroni was sacked after failing to achieve a single win.[36]
On 1 March 2007, Al-Koroni was appointed as the manager of Al-Qadsiah until the end of the season.[37] At the time of his appointment, Al-Qadsiah sat at 11th in the relegation zone. He managed to finish 10th and avoid relegation.
On 18 February 2008, Al-Koroni replaced Jan Versleijen as the manager of Al-Wehda.[38]
On 13 February 2009, Al-Koroni returned to manage Al-Riyadh for the fifth time.[39] He left at the end of the season following the expiration of his contract. On 11 January 2010, Al-Koroni was appointed as Al-Riyadh's manager for the sixth time.[40]
On 1 March 2014, Al-Koroni was appointed as Al-Ittihad's manager following the sacking of Juan Verzeri.[43] On 28 August 2014, he was sacked after Al-Ittihad were eliminated by Al Ain in the Quarter-finals of the 2014 AFC Champions League.[44]
On 22 September 2014, Al-Koroni returned to manage Al-Wehda for the third time.[45] He was sacked on 28 October 2014 after losing three matches and drawing one in four matches.[46]
On 31 October 2015, Al-Koroni was appointed as Al-Shoulla's manager until the end of the season.[47]
On 28 April 2016, Al-Koroni was appointed as Al-Batin's manager.[48] He managed the team during the promotion play-offs against Al-Raed, which they lost 5–3 on aggregate.
On 6 November 2016, Al-Koroni returned to Al-Batin following Adel Abdel Rahman's sacking.[49]
On 8 March 2018, Al-Koroni was appointed as Al-Shabab's manager following the sacking of José Carreño.[50]
On 27 January 2019, Al-Koroni returned to manage Al-Riyadh for the seventh time.[51] He resigned from his post on 15 October 2019.
On 26 February 2020, Al-Koroni was appointed as Hetten's manager until the end of the season.[52] He resigned on 27 July 2020 whilst the season was put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[53]
On 13 April 2022, Al-Koroni was appointed as Al-Kholood's manager until the end of the season.[54] On 17 May 2022, Al-Kholood renewed Al-Koroni's contract until the end of the 2022–23 season.[55] On 5 October 2022, Al-Koroni was sacked following a 2–0 defeat to Al-Sahel.[56]
On 4 December 2023, Al-Koroni was appointed as the manager of Second Division side Wej.[57]