Mr Edwin Yeo, who previously worked alongside Ogura as a strategic communication consultant for FAS, described him as a “real breath of fresh air”.
“What really came through was his experience, having gone to the World Cup … to the Olympic Games, his experience managing in the Japan J1 league not just as a coach, but also as a sporting director. So he has a sense of how football should be managed properly,” Mr Yeo added.
“I think the education that he brought to the FAS teams internally, that was really invaluable … I learned a lot from him over the last year in what professional football management really looks like.”
Before taking up the Singapore job, Ogura’s last role was at Japanese club Tokyo Verdy as an assistant coach.
He was a former assistant coach of the Japanese national team (2006-2010) and the Olympic team (2010-2012).
Following those stints, he worked at several Japanese clubs including five years with Yokohama F Marinos as sports director.
Mr Yeo described Ogura as somebody who took on board opinions but was also clear in the direction he wanted to take.
“He listens to people, but ultimately, he’s in charge, he takes responsibility. And in all aspects, he fought very hard for the team … His entire focus was making sure the team was in a great place, so that on the pitch, they can perform,” he said.
“He was very decisive in terms of the people he wanted to work with and the people he didn’t want to work with.”
