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Staff Roundup: The Key Appointments in World Football This Fortnight (June 13-26)

26 Jun, 2025
Staff Roundup: The Key Appointments in World Football This Fortnight (June 13-26)

As we move further into the FIFA Club World Cup and attention switches back to the football pitch, plenty of action is still taking place behind the scenes as executives and directors assemble their backroom teams for the upcoming 2025/26 season.

Several notable coaching appointments have been made in recent weeks, with the managerial merry-go-round in full swing as July approaches. Below, we've rounded up some of the most important staff movements that have taken place in British and European football over the last couple of weeks.

Rob Edwards, Middlesbrough

The man who guided Luton Town to the Premier League for the first time in their history is back in management, having been appointed by Premier League-chasing side Middlesbrough.

Edwards was sacked by his former club in January with a second successive relegation looming (which they failed to avoid under his replacement Matt Bloomfield), but aside from the 2024/25 season his track record in the EFL is impressive.

With previous Boro boss Michael Carrick dismissed earlier this month after a disappointing 2024/25 campaign, the former Luton coach comes in with a point to prove, telling the club website "It's a real privilege to be given the opportunity to be head coach of this great football club. It felt instantly that this was right for me and it got me excited."

Tom Cleverley, Plymouth Argyle

Tom Cleverley is a familiar face for many modern Premier League fans, and his early strides in management have brought respect from headhunters across the EFL, with the former Watford midfielder's 14 months in charge of the Hornets representing the longest managerial reign at the club since Javi Gracia's stint (which ended in 2019).

His time in charge came to an end after the club finished 14th last season, but the 35-year-old has been given a chance to continue building his reputation as a coach, after recently relegated League One outfit Plymouth Argyle have selected him to take over from the departing Miron Muslic.

Ruben Selles, Sheffield United

In his first two senior coaching jobs (at former Premier League basement boys Southampton and financially chaotic League One outfit Reading) Ruben Selles performed admirably in extremely difficult circumstances, and it hasn't gone unnoticed.

The Spaniard left his former club Hull City at the end of last season having led the team to Championship survival, and he's already made a clear step up, being revealed as the Blades' new boss less than an hour after Chris Wilder's exit was announced.

Speaking about the new job, he said "This is a very powerful and ambitious project… we need to embrace data and new technologies, but the most important thing is not to forget the football essence." 

Nick Cox, James Smith, Chris Howarth and Nick Hammond, Everton

A group of directors have been signed up by Everton as the club begin a new era playing in their state-of-the-art Bramley-Moore Dock Stadium for the first time.

Club CEO Angus Kinnear has decided to move away from the Director of Football model and instead assemble a crack team of leaders with specialism in technical development, football operations, data analytics, talent ID and player trading.

The team consists of Nick Cox (Technical Director), James Smith (Director of Scouting and Recruitment), Chris Howarth (football strategy & analytics operations lead) and Nick Hammond (player trading lead). These directors will support both the men's and women's teams.

Frederic Massara, AS Roma

Another historic European club have also announced chances behind the scenes, with Serie A side AS Roma appointing Frederic Massara as sporting director.

Bringing prior experience working at the club as well as a strong CV working across Italian and international football, Massara will work as part of an impressive-looking leadership trio of Claudio Ranieri (senior advisor) and Gian Piero Gasperini (manager).

Gerhard Struber, Bristol City

Following Liam Manning's recent move to Norwich City — which we reported on in our last biweekly staff roundup — his former club Bristol City have swooped in on a proven European manager with experience in charge of New York Red Bulls, Red Bull Salzburg, and Koln.

Gerhard Struber, an Austrian coach best known for his time within the global Red Bull set-up, joins the fold with just one Championship stint to his name (at Barnsley from 2019 to 2020), so whether he has what it takes to replicate the Robins' play-off finish under Manning last season remains to be seen.

Julien Stephan, Queens Park Rangers

It's been a busy couple of weeks in the Championship, with QPR becoming the latest second-tier English side to announce the appointment of a new boss, on 25th June.

Julian Stephan, who has spent the majority of his senior managerial career at the French outfit Rennes (he won the French Cup with the club in 2019) has moved to west London and immediately expressed his love for English football, saying: "I wanted to come here because I know there's a lot of passion around the club and around the team, and I feel very lucky to discover that. There is something unique about English football.

The intensity, the atmosphere, the passion of the fans also… the culture around the club all make it a very stimulating environment for a coach." Stephan has also been joined by Arsenal legend Steve Bould, who assumes the position of Head of Defensive Coaching and First Team Coach.

Rob Page, Liverpool Under-21s

Rob Page left Wales last summer after a series of disappointing results, but overall his record with the men's national team was solid: not only did he guide his country to the Last 16 at Euro 2020, he also helped Wales to their first-ever World Cup appearance two years later in Qatar. By bringing him into their youth set-up as Under-21s head coach, Liverpool have made a shrewd appointment.

According to academy director Alex Inglethorpe, "Rob brings a wealth of playing and coaching experience to a key role as young players look to bridge that gap from Academy product to first-team footballer." Inglethorpe went on to praise the work Page did with Wales progressing numerous pathway players into the senior squad, adding: "This is something we have seen first-hand at Liverpool with several of our academy players making significant progress on the international stage under Rob's guidance." 

Carlos Cuesta, Parma

Mikel Arteta's rise toward the top of the Premier League has been aided by an impressive team of coaches, from assistants Albert Stuivenberg and Miguel Molina to the much-hyped set play specialist Nicolas Jover.

However, he's now suffered a serious blow as his promising 29-year-old assistant Carlos Cuesta has been poached by Serie A outfit Parma, with a view to taking over the club on July 1st. Signing an initial two-year deal with an option for an additional year extension, Cuesta becomes the second-youngest Serie A head coach ever.

Brian Barry-Murphy, Cardiff City

Cardiff City have appointed their new manager: Brian Barry-Murphy, an Irish coach who views Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola as a hero.

Previously part of Ruud van Nistelrooy's backroom team at Leicester City, Barry-Murphy reportedly excelled during the selection process and brings a record of strong youth development to the Welsh capital, with owner Vincent Tan saying that he's "coached some of the brightest young prospects in the UK, many of whom are now playing at the very top of the game."

Ross Grant, Hearts

The rise of set piece coaching in professional football has been well documented, and one of the most visible set play specialists to have emerged in recent years is Aston Villa's Austin MacPhee.

Now, one of McPhee's most committed understudies, Ross Grant, has secured his own first-team role after joining Hearts as Set Play Coach. Having spent four years in the academy setup at Dundee United, Grant comes in with the intention of offering "tailored coaching and analysis to the first team as part of a data driven approach to improving both attacking and defensive set piece outcomes."

Martin Paterson, Notts County

After proving a talented assistant coach to Michael Duff at Barnsley, Huddersfield, and Swansea City, Martin Paterson has continued to forge his own path in the game, joining League One Notts County as head coach.

His early interviews have contained some interesting comments, from admitting "I don't deal with the data — I don't understand it… I am a person who works quite simply on the football side of things" to insisting that in terms of playing philosophy "there's not a lot that's wrong [at the club], and we all want to dominate the ball."

Chris Elliot, Huddersfield Town

Former Leeds United head of academy goalkeeping Chris Elliot has stepped up to first team affairs with a new role at West Yorkshire outfit Huddersfield Town. The Terriers appointed Elliot to support head coach Lee Grant as goalkeeping coach, with Marc Bridge-Wilkinson, Paul McShane and Jonathan Robinson also supporting Grant behind the scenes.

Matt Hale, Derby County B Team

Already based at the club as Academy Manager, experienced youth team coach Matt Hale has taken on a new role as the head of Derby County's brand-new B Team set-up. The club announced the launch of this new initiative, which follows in the footsteps of English sides like Brentford, Southampton, and Huddersfield, on June 25th, marking a turning point for the club's approach to developing youth.

Speaking about the new role, Hale said: "This innovative concept will provide a base for our high-potential Academy players to get game time alongside and against senior footballers, with a key aim  of bringing the first team methodology closer to the academy."

Sarah Richardson, Stoke City Women

Stoke City have announced the appointment of a new coach to head up their women's team, as former Loughborough Lightning assistant Sarah Richardson makes the step up to senior coaching.

Brought into the fold by sporting director Jonathan Walters, Richardson joins the Potters as the club launches a new elite girls' academy and looks to build on a third-placed finish in the National League North last season.