To most English football fans, Peter Cklamovski is a name that needs some introduction.The highly rated Australian coach took over as Salford City boss this summer after building an impressive career across continents and in some hugely demanding environments.He was a long-term assistant to Ange Postecoglou in Australia, Japan and Greece, before striking out on his own, winning plaudits for his attacking, high-energy football and work with young players at Shimizu S-Pulse, Montedio Yamagata and FC Tokyo in Japan. He also impressed with the Malaysia national team.Now, at 47, he has arrived in League Two as one of the most intriguing EFL appointments in recent years, and with a clear objective – to get Salford promoted after seven seasons in the division.‘I’ve loved English football from afar and now I’m in the middle of it,’ Cklamovski tells Daily Mail Sport. ‘I’m honoured and privileged to be here, and it’s been fantastic so far.’His relationship with Postecoglou naturally attracts plenty of interest. The pair spent 15 years working together, including a spell in the lower divisions in Greece as the former Tottenham boss built his managerial career. Salford City appointed Australian coach Peter Cklamovski as their new manager this summer Cklamovski was a long-term assistant to former Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou Together, they won the AFC Asian Cup with Australia and took the Socceroos to the 2014 World Cup. Their partnership was credited with helping reshape coaching standards, methodology and tactical identity in Australia and Asia, and only ended when Cklamovski took the managerial job at Shimizu in 2020.The pair remain in constant contact, with Postecoglou acting as a mentor and ‘sounding board’ while Cklamovski was applying for the Salford job.‘Fifteen years with Ange… it’s a long time with anybody,’ says Cklamovski. ‘We’ve got a special connection and synergy. I take a lot from him, and I can’t speak highly enough of him.‘Whatever I’ve done in my career over the last eight years, and however long I’ve got left, I want it to be an extension of his legacy. That’s how much he means to me.’If we’re successful, I know that’s going to make him very proud sitting in Saudi Arabia, and hopefully he can do the same in 12 months.’Cklamovski certainly shares some similarities with his former boss, particularly in his mannerisms and the way he communicates. But his route to English football has been distinctly his own.‘Mate, this is going to get deep, but for a long time I didn’t really have that aim to get to England as a manager,’ he says. ‘Ange had a motivation to get to English football so as a loyal soldier to him, I pushed hard for that.‘When I went out on my own, my ambition was to be a dominant manager in Asia. But in the last couple of months, the ambition for me personally, the fire and flame of English football just switched. And here I am.‘The timing of it was natural. Trust the universe. I’ve got a really strong motivation to do something special with a football club that has great people and an inspiring mentality in the playing group.’ Cklamovski gained rave reviews for his work as a manager in Japan and with Malaysia He has taken over a Salford side desperate to get promoted from League Two this yearHow Cklamovski ended up in the English fourth tier, at a club whose ownership group includes David Beckham and Gary Neville and where Paul Scholes serves as the chief football adviser, is an interesting story.Its origins date back eight years, when he was working alongside Postecoglou at Yokohama F Marinos, part of the City Football Group.Salford CEO Gavin Fleig spent 17 years with CFG, including seven as director of talent management, and came across Cklamovski during his time in the Far East.At the end of a family holiday to the UK earlier this summer, the pair met up. Fleig promised to get in touch if he ever needed a manager.This was no favour to an old colleague, however. Cklamovski – who didn’t speak to Beckham or Neville during the process – emerged as the outstanding candidate after impressing across various data metrics and during the interview process.‘The aim is to chase promotions and that resonates with me,’ he says. ‘I’m not afraid of that. I have a strong belief we can achieve it with special people and play a brand of football that’s going to entertain our fans and bring pride and excitement to the Salford community.’Scholes had to google Cklamovski as he didn’t know who he was, but was particularly impressed, although Salford’s decision to appoint a manager with no experience of English football is undoubtedly a risk.That move came after the club sacked Karl Robinson despite only missing out on automatic promotion on the final day of last season, before they lost to Notts County in the play-off final.The hierarchy admitted the decision to part company with Robinson was a difficult one. But with Salford’s budget understood to have increased this season, the club are determined to finally make the step up to League One.Cklamovski intends to build on Robinson’s work, rather than rip everything up and start again.‘Whatever sort of team you take over, you can’t stand still,’ he says. ‘We’ve got the benefit of the work done over the years, especially last year, and we’ve used that as a foundation. But you’ve got to go to another level. We’ll use the heartache from last year as motivation as well.’ Salford missed out on automatic promotion last season before losing in the play-off final Salford, whose ownership group includes Gary Neville and David Beckham, have reverted to their traditional orange colours ahead of a big season for the clubHis arrival at Moor Lane coincides with a significant season of change for Salford.The club have increased their playing budget, reverted to their traditional orange colours as part of a rebrand in which Beckham played a key role, improved their Man United-owned Littleton Road training ground and overhauled their medical department.There have also been statement signings, including Millwall striker Macaulay Langstaff, the League Two Golden Boot winner in 2023-24, and Doncaster Rovers winger Luke Molyneux, who was named in the division’s Team of the Season in 2024-25.‘It’s a sign of the club’s ambition,’ Cklamovski says. ‘But it also shows the commitment to building something special long-term. We’ve made some great signings but there’s a super core group here as well, and that’s exciting.’ Salford begin their league campaign at Barnet on Saturday after losing on penalties to Shrewsbury in the EFL Cup last week. It promises to be the first proper acid test of Cklamovski’s reign – and whether his aggressive style can translate into the results and entertainment he has promised supporters.‘We want to play a brand of football that’s going to make every Salford fan and everyone at the club proud and excited,’ he says. ‘We want to have a goalscoring mentality, but we’ll also have a real strong mentality to roll our sleeves up and keep clean sheets.‘We’ve got to stay humble, work hard, and commit to that. Some really good work has started, but there’s a lot more work to do.’