Oxford United are seventh in the league after four wins from their first six
He is credited with developing Declan Rice during his time with West Ham U23s
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Liam Manning opens with a line that is never a good way to start an interview.
“I’m a pretty boring person,” he says. But after speaking to the 38-year-old Oxford United boss, it’s clear that Manning and his team are far from boring.
The U’s have won four of their six games in League One and are seen by many as an outside bet for success. Thanks to their expansive, possession-based style of play, they are one of the best teams to watch in the Football League. Despite being boring – during the international break he rarely spent days walking his family and dog instead of going somewhere exotic – Manning has had a more unusual career than most in the country.
“I joined the Ipswich academy when I was 13, the year they got promoted to the Premier League and went into the UEFA Cup with the great Marcus Stewart,” says Manning. “At the end of my fellowship I said to Joe Royle, ‘You’re not quite what we’re looking for.’
Liam Manning has had a more unusual career than most since being rejected by Ipswich aged 13.
Liam Manning has had a more unusual career than most since being rejected by Ipswich aged 13.
The Oxford United boss enjoyed success in charge of MK Dons but narrowly missed out on promotion
The Oxford United boss enjoyed success in charge of MK Dons but narrowly missed out on promotion
“There are hundreds of thousands of kids out there that have had it. I don’t think you realize until you’re out of the Academy bubble how hard it is to create a way to play in this industry.
“So I bounced around a few clubs on trial, played non-league, went abroad and played in Iceland for a year, but then came back and was at a crossroads. And then I ended up coaching Ipswich. They’re a decent club, they look after themselves with a family feeling
“It was quite full to make ends meet. You never earned much as a scientist. I worked at school from 8am to 3.30pm, then I trained five nights a week, then Saturday mornings, played non-league football on Saturday afternoons and Sunday mornings.
Manning joins the ranks of managers who did not have stellar playing careers. In the league table, next to Oxford, for example, you can find Mark Bonner from Cambridge, who joined the club as a youth coach as a teenager and is now the head coach of the national team.
Manning continued his seven-a-day schedule to become head coach of the Tractor Boys’ youth ranks, then took charge of West Ham’s under-23s, where he is credited with developing Declan Rice, before leading recruitment in New York . FC.
“I had the opportunity to come to West Ham but I was asked to be the director of recruitment at NYCFC, they were only four years old but they were supported by the City Football Group,” he adds.
– It was an opportunity to develop myself, see the world a bit and shape my football ideas. It was understanding how to communicate and get people to buy into my methods.
“I’ve always set goals and I’ve had goals, but I want to be the best version of myself. I’ve never chased anything, but I’ve let my work do the talking. The journey always stays in place behind. it.
Manning’s U’s are currently seventh in League One after four wins from their first six games.
Manning’s U’s are currently seventh in League One after four wins from their first six games
“I’m not afraid to say at the beginning that I copied some ways of working. But now I confidently say with my philosophy: “It’s me”. I was lucky to have mentors who gave me things along the way.
“The thing is, you like different people. When you look at Pep, how can you not want to study him and learn from him? But it’s about understanding how you can translate what they do to your team.
Manning worked as manager of Belgian club Lommel, where he spent a study visit with Vincent Kompany at Anderlecht before succeeding as MK Dons boss despite narrowly missing out on promotion.
He took over at Oxford at the end of last season as the club stared down the barrel of relegation to League Two, picking up just one point from their last 10 games, before the departure of long-serving Karl Robinson. They are now applying for a promotion.
“I wouldn’t say they were easy victories … but it required a new voice and new methods,” he says.
I entered an environment where players wanted to be trained. The boys really bought into it. He spent time on a study visit to Lommel in Belgium with Vincent Kompany, the current Burnley boss.
He spent time on a study visit to Lommel in Belgium with Vincent Kompany, the current Burnley boss.
“It’s been a busy summer, 17 players out and 11 in. We’ve spent a lot of time looking at players and getting into their characters. Identifying a good player is easy – it’s more about building a team with a good cultural fit, balancing youth and experience.
“We let the players hear their voices in the meetings. We work on communication on the field, but we play clips in the meetings and tell them, ‘What do you see?’ Break it.”
– We go through the same process whether we win 3-0 or lose 3-0. What did we do well? What can we do better? This creates a culture of improvement every week. – We set goals
