Trapattoni - highly regarded coach. (Allsport)

By Reece Killworth, Sportinglife.com

One of the most respected coaches in world football, Giovanni Trapattoni heads for the Far East looking to add a World Cup winners' medal to his long list of achievements.

In an impressive managerial career which has taken him to five of Europe's biggest clubs, Trapattoni has won just about everything there is to win.

Eight league titles, one European Cup, three Uefa Cups and the Cup Winners' Cup have all found their way on to Trapattoni's mantlepiece during his 30 years in management.

Before becoming a coach though, Trapattoni was also a decent player as well - making 17 appearances for Italy while playing for AC Milan.

And he was handed his first coaching post at the San Siro in 1973 when he was appointed by Milan.

After three years there he was lured to Juventus where the good times began.

In his decade there, Juve swept the board both domestically and in Europe.

Trapattoni inspired the Italian giants to six Serie A titles, the European Cup, the Cup Winners' Cup, the Super Cup, the Intercontinental Cup and two Italian Cups as they established themselves as one of Europe's greatest teams of all time.

By 1986, though, Trapattoni had returned to Milan to take charge of Inter.

In his five years there, he added another Serie A title and the UEFA Cup to his already burgeoning trophy cabinet before heading to Bayern Munich.

A disappointing season there saw him head for Cagliari, but after an even poorer campaign in Italy he returned to the Olympic Stadium and won the Bundesliga title and German Cup in his two years there.

Two years at Fiorentina were the final stage in his glittering domestic management career so far before Italy came calling after Dino Zoff quit following Euro 2000.

Trapattoni has built a reputation for himself as a coach who concentrates on the basics of the game.

He likes to get into the minds of his players to find out what makes them tick - and his years in the game have proved he can cope with all sorts of characters.

He is also a keen student of football and has adapted well to the many changes in the game in his career.

Trapattoni - ranked eighth in the IFFHS' coach of the year poll last year - is highly regarded by both players and his fellow coaches and would be a popular World Cup winner.