Swansea City have this afternoon confirmed the appointment of 39 year old Steve Cooper as their new first team manager, replacing Graham Potter who left for Brighton & Hove Albion last month.
Cooper leaves his job as an England Under 17 World Cup winning manager where he helped develop the likes of Jadon Sancho, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Phil Foden.
He has also managed the England U16 team as well as academy manager at Liverpool and Wrexham. With the Reds, he also oversaw the making of Raheem Sterling, Trent Alexander-Arnold, and Ben Woodburn
In 2017, he spoke of his preferred style of play. He said: “Brave on the ball, pass, pass, pass, not one long ball, get into good areas, play as a team and some good individual play up the field as well.” He also cites former Barcelona B coach José Segura as his main influence.
? The wait is over! Welcome to @SwansOfficial, Steve! ? #CroesoCooper pic.twitter.com/ePvQX8DMZH
— Swansea City AFC (@SwansOfficial) June 13, 2019
Swansea City chairman, Trevor Birch, confirmed: “We are excited and delighted with the appointment.
“Together with Leon (Britton) and Alan (Curtis) we went through a long and thorough interview process covering a lot of very good candidates. The quality was extremely high, which speaks volumes about the attractiveness of the opportunity and how well respected this football club is within the game.
“At the forefront of our thinking was the appointment of a head coach who was hungry, ambitious, had a clear track record of playing our style of football, plus a pedigree to work with and develop young, talented players.
“Steve matched all those requirements in abundance and his views, coaching ethos and presentation were extremely compelling.
It may be his first senior role, but he has been coaching for over 20 years and, let’s not forget, our young squad saw more game time for under-23 players than any other team in the Championship last season. And not many people can say they have won a World Cup, even at under-17 level!
“He is highly regarded as one of the best young coaches in the country and at some stage was always going to be given an opportunity by someone. I’m delighted we are that club because Swansea has a great track record of success in doing just that with the likes of Roberto Martinez and Brendan Rodgers, for example.’’
Birch added: “We were targeting a head coach rather than a manager because we feel the work on the training pitch will be vital to our success. The appointment of Mike Marsh as his assistant – who has a wealth of knowledge and senior experience – will play a vital role in supporting Steve.
“We will also ensure he receives support from a strong infrastructure around him. Leon and Alan will be regular and familiar figures down at the training ground who, together with the impending new head of recruitment and other backroom hires, will form a strong collaborative team behind the scenes.
“We believe Steve is ready for it, but more importantly he believes he is ready for it as well. We are excited by the appointment and have every confidence and belief in his abilities to be successful.’’
Following the announcement of the appointment, fans took to give their reaction on the club’s Twitter – find out what they tweeted by clicking on the next page.
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