Arthur Diles
Australian soccer manager
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Arthur Diles (born 22 April 1982) is an Australian soccer manager and former player. He is the current head coach of Melbourne Victory in the A-League Men.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Arthur Diles | ||
| Date of birth | 22 April 1982 | ||
| Place of birth | Sydney, Australia | ||
| Position | Centre back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Melbourne Victory (head coach) | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1994–2000 | Sydney Olympic FC | ||
| 2000 | Sydney United 58 FC | ||
| 2000–2002 | Parramatta Power SC | ||
| 2002 | K.V. Mechelen | ||
| 2004–2005 | Sydney Olympic FC | ||
| 2005 | Crawley Town F.C. | ||
| 2006 | Sydney Olympic FC | ||
| 2007 | Western Suburbs SC | ||
| Managerial career | |||
| 2010–2012 | AEK Athens F.C. (academy) | ||
| 2012–2013 | NSW Institute of Sport (youth) | ||
| 2013–2015 | Sydney Olympic (technical director) | ||
| 2015–2020 | Western Sydney Wanderers Youth | ||
| 2018–2019 | Western Sydney Wanderers (assistant) | ||
| 2020–2021 | Xanthi (assistant) | ||
| 2021–2023 | Newcastle Jets (assistant) | ||
| 2023–2024 | Melbourne Victory (assistant) | ||
| 2024 | Melbourne Victory (caretaker) | ||
| 2025– | Melbourne Victory | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Early and personal life
Playing career
A centre-back, Diles began playing in the academy of Sydney Olympic. He also played in Australia for Sydney United and Parramatta Power, as well as spells in Europe with Crawley Town in English non-league football, and K.V. Mechelen in Belgium.[1][2] He retired at age 25 due to the decline of the National Soccer League in Australia, and a prospective employer in Europe going bankrupt.[3]
Managerial career
Diles began coaching at the academy of AEK Athens F.C. in Greece before taking the under-14 team of the New South Wales Institute of Sport, leading them to a national title in 2013. As technical director of Sydney Olympic, a team based in the Greek Australian community, he signed former Greece international defender Sotirios Kyrgiakos.[1][3]
At Western Sydney Wanderers, Diles won titles with the under-18 and under-20 teams before becoming manager of the reserve team in the National Premier Leagues and assistant manager of the first team.[1][3] In September 2020, Diles returned to Greece as assistant manager of Xanthi F.C. after its purchase by Sydney Olympic director Bill Papas; former Australia international Tony Popovic became the manager.[4]
In June 2021, Diles returned to Australia, being named as assistant to Arthur Papas at Newcastle Jets of A-League Men.[5] In July 2023, he moved into the same role at Melbourne Victory, to Popovic and then Patrick Kisnorbo.[6]
On 16 December 2024, Kisnorbo quit the Victory five days before the local derby against Melbourne City, leaving Diles in temporary charge.[6] His debut was a 1–1 home draw with an equaliser by captain Roderick Miranda.[7] On 24 January 2025, he obtained his first win in his seventh game, winning The Big Blue 2–0 over Sydney FC at Melbourne Rectangular Stadium; a week later he was hired on a permanent basis until the end of the 2025–26 season.[8]
Diles took Melbourne Victory to 5th in the regular season and then the grand final, having defeated premiers Auckland FC in the semi-finals. His team lost the final 1–0 on 31 May 2025 to Melbourne City.[9]
Managerial statistics
- As of 16 March 2026[10]
| Team | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | Win % | |||
| Melbourne Victory | December 2024 | Present | 45 | 18 | 11 | 16 | 40.00 |
| Total | 45 | 18 | 11 | 16 | 40.00 | ||
Honours
Manager
Western Sydney Wanderers Youth
- National Youth League Champion: 2017–18[11]