Valdas Dambrauskas, manager of Azerbaijani champions Sabah, has reached the Champions League league phase for the first time after a journey that began with a TV quiz show appearance. Sabah secured their debut in the competition proper with a 5-2 extra-time win over Hapoel Be'er Sheva in Baku on Tuesday.
From quiz show to coaching career
Dambrauskas won the equivalent of a year's wages in Lithuania on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. Instead of staying home, he used the money to move to England and study sport science and coaching at London Metropolitan University.
"After we'd paid for our flights and accommodation, we had money left for just one month," Dambrauskas told FourFourTwo in 2022. He spoke limited English on arrival but learned enough to earn his first coaching role with London Tigers, a non-league team in west London.
Early roles and first titles
He also worked in youth coaching with Manchester United's football schools, Fulham and Brentford. He graduated in 2009 and took charge of Lithuania's Under-17 team that same year.
Speaking to FlashScore about his TV debut, Dambrauskas said: "I went to this show to compete and to have a good time. Since I was 12 years old, when I realised I will not be a professional player, I knew I wanted to be a football coach."
His first top-flight job came at Ekranas in Lithuania, where he served as assistant to Valdas Urbonas before taking charge in early 2013. He later led Zalgiris to back-to-back league titles, though he could not take them into the Champions League group stage.
Silverware across Europe
After leaving Zalgiris in October 2017, Dambrauskas won trophies in three more countries: the Bulgarian league with Ludogorets and domestic cups with RFS in Latvia and Hajduk Split in Croatia. He took Ludogorets within one match of Champions League qualification in 2021, losing 3-2 on aggregate to Malmo.
Now 49, Dambrauskas has also managed in Greece, Cyprus and Hungary. He has won 50 per cent of matches at all but one of his clubs.
Sabah's dramatic qualification
Sabah's European campaign started poorly last season, with defeats to Celje in Europa League qualifying and Levski Sofia in Conference League qualifying. But the club won a league and cup double, with Rwandan striker Joy-Lance Mickels scoring 28 goals in all competitions, including a last-gasp cup final winner.
Against Hapoel, Sabah trailed 1-0 from the first leg in Bucharest and were 2-1 down in the home leg with 20 minutes remaining. Goals from Umarali Rakhmonaliev and Tellur Mutallimov, the latter in the fourth minute of stoppage time, forced extra time. Hapoel had two players sent off, and Patrick Mbina put Sabah ahead on aggregate before Mickels sealed the win five minutes from the end.
"First of all, [we want] to test ourselves and compete against the best," Dambrauskas told FlashScore. "It is not only excitement but also a big responsibility and an opportunity. It is very important for the club's growth. We can only grow individually and as a team. We want to use this opportunity."
