Fans react as Liam Manning comments on departing Huddersfield Town after taking compassionate leave earlier this year.
On Monday evening (11 May), the Terriers announced that Liam Manning will not return to the Club as head coach following the conclusion of the 2025/26 season.
Owner and chairman Kevin Nagle, sporting director Chris Markham and Liam Manning spoke on the decision below…
Huddersfield Town can today confirm that Liam Manning will not return to the Club as Head Coach following the conclusion of the 2025/26 season.
Comments from Owner and Chairman Kevin Nagle, Sporting Director Chris Markham and Liam Manning below.#htafc
— Huddersfield Town (@htafc) May 11, 2026
STATEMENT ISSUED BY THE CLUB:
Huddersfield Town can today confirm that Liam Manning will not return to the Club as Head Coach following the conclusion of the 2025/26 season.
Liam was granted compassionate leave on 25 March 2026, having made the Club aware of ongoing personal matters relating to the tragic passing of his newborn son Theo in October 2024.
While Liam stepped away from his professional duties during this time, Town officials and Liam have been in consistent contact. Following the most recent conversations, this decision has been mutually agreed in the best interest of Liam, his family and the Club.
Huddersfield Town Owner and Chairman Kevin Nagle commented:
“I want to pay huge tribute to Liam today. Stepping away from this role is the correct decision for him and his family, and that comes before absolutely everything else. His openness and honesty about this situation have been second-to-none.
“His time at Huddersfield Town had been relatively short but he has shown a deep care and respect for the Club in how he has dealt with us. He will always be a Terrier and is always welcome back at Accu Stadium.”
Huddersfield Town Sporting Director Chris Markham added:
“I’m sad that I won’t get the chance to work with Liam for longer but, as Mr. Nagle has rightly stated, family must always come first. This is the right decision for the Manning family, and that is all important.
“We knew Liam was an excellent Head Coach before he arrived, but seeing how he works up close only cemented that opinion. I look forward to seeing him back in a dugout in the future, but only when it is right for him and his family.”
Liam Manning said:
“Stepping down from Huddersfield Town has been a difficult decision, but one I feel is best for the Club, my family and myself at this time.
“It has been a privilege to manage this team and be a part of this community. I am grateful to the fans for their support and compassion in recent months.
“The understanding and care from the Club has gone above and beyond, and I would like to thank Kevin Nagle, Chris Markham, the wider First Team staff and players for their professionalism, commitment and dedication in my absence.
“Although my time was shorter than I had hoped, I am grateful for the opportunity Kevin Nagle entrusted in me and wish nothing but success for Huddersfield Town moving forwards.”
Everyone at Huddersfield Town would like to wish Liam the very best for the future.
Our Huddersfield Town commentator Paul Ogden discusses what happens now, following the news that Liam Manning will not return to the club as head coach.
Manning leaves Huddersfield Town by mutual consent, two months after taking compassionate leave. #HTAFC | #BBCFootball pic.twitter.com/pdHpizREk7
— BBC Sport West Yorkshire (@BBCWYS) May 12, 2026
BBC Sport West Yorkshire’s Huddersfield Town commentator Paul Ogden said:
“The answer should be complicated because Huddersfield Town, Kevin Nagle, the owner has made no secret of the fact that last season wasn’t satisfactory, nor was the previous one, Town having finished 10th and more recently 9th in their two seasons in League One so far.
“The absence of Liam Manning at the end of the season was as a result of a tragedy and is really upsetting for anybody that knew Liam Manning personally. Lovely fella. Doted on his family and clearly struggled throughout his time because of the need to support his family in these terrible circumstances.
“The team on the field, irrespective of who’s been the head coach, has performed unsatisfactorily and that situation needs to be fixed very urgently if we read the owners comments correctly. If the people making decisions at Huddersfield Town, which include Kevin Nagle but the, it’s not solely Kevin Nagle makes these decisions.
“They will have been professional enough to have a plan B cooking, I would have thought, since the 21st of March when Liam Manning made it clear to them that he couldn’t carry on any longer for personal reasons.
“In the same way that when Huddersfield Town last season decided to sack Michael Duff in March when Town were defeated at Bristol Rovers and dropped a seventh in the table. They will have had a plan and they executed that plan to hire ultimately Lee Grant to replace Michael Duff who lost his job at the time.
“And although I’m not drawing an entire parallel with the two situations, it is Chris Markham and Kevin Nagle’s job together and anybody else that wants to advise them in house to try and at least have a plan B and find a replacement.
“That replacement, those replacements might end up being a combination of Martin Drury and Jonathan Stead. But that’s a decision which will have been being made in the process of the last few months, I would have thought.”
Fans react as Liam Manning comments on departing Huddersfield after compassionate leave…
@TheTwatOfHTAFC: At the end of any statement that announces the departing of a manager/head coach is usually followed by something among the lines of: “The club will now seek to recruit a replacement manager/head coach.” This wasn’t included, so I’m guessing Drury & Stead got the job? #HTAFC
@htafc_lewis1: Don’t care that we didn’t achieve what we wanted to under him this season, some things are bigger than football. I wish Liam the very best for him and his family, and everyone at town does too ❤️
@KingKas_: Hope he gets the help he needs. Always a place for him in Huddersfield. Thankyou for those first three games 🩵
@CScott____: Hear me out, Leam Richardson IS the man you want to lead your promotion push next season #HTAFC #ReadingFC
@RFCjoseph: Please don’t take Richardson off us
@theterriersfan: Best of luck Liam, hope to cross paths one day soon 🤝
@jps_237: 8 managers under the @KevinNagleMLS era. No doubt he’s backed us heavily but something’s not right. What worked well under Wagner is he was the one choosing the players we recruited. Drury : stead not the right option. Niklas Muller or Daniel Rios the way I’d go.
@sw1ftyzachy: Wow. Am I shocked? No, however part of me wanted him to stay. Clearly a good manager but if his mind can’t be fully on football then i understand. Best of luck in whatever you do next Liam and i hope you get the help you need. #htafc #efl #liammanning #mensmentalhealthmatters
@_htfcharry_: All the best Liam ❤️🩹. If we go & give Drury & Stead job we will be back in the same position in a years time. No play offs, mid table & or he situation will be toxic #HTAFC
@HotlineHtafc_: Wishing Liam and his family all the best in their future – it’s a shame the way it played out but some things are far more important. From a club perspective, interested to see our next step. Rumours swirling that Stead and Drury have it, not convinced that’s the answer. #Htafc
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