Shanghai SIPG head coach Vitor Pereira, who helped the club lift its maiden Chinese Super League trophy last year, has been honored with the 2019 Shanghai Magnolia Silver Award. The 51-year-old Portuguese manager was among the 58 expats named as winners of the city accolade.

The award is given in recognition of a foreign resident’s contribution to the city’s development. The championship was the first CSL title for Shanghai since the league was launched in 2004. SIPG also broke arch rival Guangzhou Evergrande’s seven-year stranglehold on the domestic league.

The last top-tier league title Shanghai won was back in the Jia-A era when Shenhua became the champion for the 1995 season.

Last year was Pereira’s first season as SIPG head coach, taking over the club from his more illustrious compatriot Andre Villas-Boas following the former Chelsea coach’s departure at the end of 2017.

Pereira was an assistant to his SIPG predecessor when the two worked for Portuguese side Porto during the 2010-11 season. Being nine years older than AVB, Pereira did a better job at controlling his temper at SIPG, as well as in communication with club officials.

Prior to joining, Pereira had already worked with SIPG’s key player Hulk during their Porto days. Aware of Hulk’s personality and quality, Pereira gave the captain’s armband to the burly striker, and the Brazilian paid back the head coach’s trust by his performance on the pitch through the 2017 season.

Pereira promised Shanghai fans a title at the beginning of last season, and managed to bring back the CSL trophy with one round still to play. But the Portuguese was modest about his own contribution, attributing the success to the club’s teamwork, including player unity and club officials’ support.

“We were like a family, fighting together and supporting each other,” was Pereira’s mantra in front of media and the public.

When Pereira took over last year, SIPG already had a relatively strong lineup with star players like Hulk, another Brazilian Oscar and China’s Wu Lei. Pereira maintained the squad’s stability while gradually applying his coaching methods. Apart from seeking improvement in players’ techniques, he emphasized the balance between attack and defense.

Coming into the 2019 season, Pereira started giving more playing time to players like Li Shenglong and Yang Shiyuan, who rarely made the starting 11 before. The club did not buy new players this year following the departure of top scorer Wu to Spain’s Espanyol, therefore, Pereira had to “explore” for potential from inside the team. This meant playing opportunities for younger players like Chen Binbin and Wei Zhen.

Pereira could not show up for the Magnolia Awards ceremony in mid-September as he was with his team in Shandong Province for a CSL match against Shandong Luneng. Currently lying third in the CSL standings, behind Evergrande and Beijing Guoan, SIPG is still fighting for the league title following its elimination from the AFC Champions League and the China FA Cup this season.

The club has already pocketed the 2019 CFA Super Cup trophy — won in February after a 2-0 victory over 2018 CFA Cup winner Beijing Guoan.