Newcastle Jets confirmed Arthur Papas as their new coach this week but it's an assistant that arrived earlier this year that could have just as big an impact on the club.
Karl Dodd was brought to the Hunter by Craig Deans after over three unique years in charge of Guam's national team.
Guam is a small island nation located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with an official population of just over 168,000.
In football terms, the country has unsurprisingly struggled to make its mark and is currently ranked 198th in the world.
Dodd, who played in the A-League for three clubs, began his managerial career in charge of Queensland side Western Pride and was poached by Guam in 2017.
Though his time in charge was impacted by COVID-19, the Aussie oversaw a massive transformation of football across the country with the 'Matao' now close to making the third round of Asian Cup qualifying for the first time.
Back in Australia due to family reasons, Dodd's time in Guam was a whirlwind learning experience and one that's given the 40-year-old an invaluable perspective on football as he hits the ground running at the Jets.
"It was three-and-a-half years but I had probably 20 years of learning in there to be honest," Dodd told Sporting News.
"You’re managing an international business in one aspect. I was coordinating everything, building a football plan for Guam and when you’ve seen it done in places like that, coming back to the A-League, your problems don’t seem as big. You know how to create and implement sustainable plans in difficult situations.
"You have an idea but then it becomes more realistic once you’re there. Change is different in every country and every environment - it just depends on where you’re at.
"If you’re going to say Guam is at the same level as Japan, you’re kidding yourself. They’re 50, 60 years behind in terms of their processes and football.
"Moving forward, I’m always available to continue to help the Guam Football Association as I want to see their football plan bare fruition and I still keep in touch with the players."
Dodd's time in Guam required him to do a whole lot more than just coach the national team as he looked to fundamentally change how a nation approached football.
While the Jets don't quite require such a big overhaul, they do need to change direction after a difficult few years and only just dodging the wooden spoon in the A-League this past season.
For Dodd, any change must begin at the top and filter down, noting all successful clubs and organisations have the right people keeping them on track.
"Alignment within the club and a clear plan is needed. In a club there’s a CEO but I think there also needs to be a CEO of football," Dodd said.
"Whether you call it a general manager of football or a football director, that person needs to be there and they should be in charge of all footballing decisions.
"Ensuring that the strategic plan of the whole club is being kept on track and held accountable. Having that set up and run rather than agents influencing owners and CEOs.
"Coaches are asked to hold the highest accreditations possible to work in professional football, and rightly so, but why aren't off-field staff held to the same standard?
"Having a qualified person in that football director role is key for a club to continually progress with its football plan. If you look at Europe, the top teams, they have that process in place. They’re not hitting the reset button every time a new coach comes in.
"Sydney FC for one in Australia consistently perform well because they have clear plans in place."
Though Dodd concedes Australia's football problems aren't comparable to Guam's, he has noticed a few major oversights that need addressing moving forward.
"We’ve still got A-League clubs renting facilities, where was the foresight at the start? There’s so much dead money being spent," he said.
"Clubs are moving around like gypsies and that’s not good because how do you get stability on the playing front when you’re constantly doing that? That side of it really needs to be looked at and regulated."
For now though, Dodd's full focus will be on getting the Jets flying again with a short off-season and an FFA Cup play-off against Western United in early August giving Newcastle a relatively short runway.
But if his time in Guam is anything to go, the Jets assistant is more than up for the challenge.