Bristol City are poised to announce Liam Manning as their head coach, with the Championship club set to adopt a fresh approach after sacking Nigel Pearson.
Manning, whose CV includes a spell at the Belgian side Lommel, owned by the City Football Group that controls Manchester City, represents an intriguing appointment and a clear shift in model. His first match in charge is due to be at Queens Park Rangers on Saturday.
The 38-year-old has impressed at Oxford United, leading them to second in League One this season after fighting off relegation upon taking charge in March. He previously led MK Dons to the League One playoffs in 2021-22.
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Manning, who began coaching at Ipswich aged 21 and became West Ham’s Under-23s head coach, was identified by the Bristol City hierarchy as the outstanding candidate to implement a club-wide attacking playing style across the academy and first team.
Bristol City are 11th in the second tier after Pearson’s former assistant, Curtis Fleming, led the team to victory over the bottom club Sheffield Wednesday last Saturday. Jon Lansdown, the Bristol City chairman, recently suggested the club should be in the mix for the playoffs this season.
Last week Lansdown responded to criticism levelled at him for sacking Pearson, who was out of contract at the end of the season. “All I want from the team is to get into the Premier League and in a way where you can stay there and it doesn’t fall away at any point,” he said.
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“[A way that] improves the club and the city to where it takes it to a completely different level, that’s all we’re trying to achieve. Whether we get things right or wrong, time will tell but it’s always coming from a good place.”