Sol Campbell: Manager of Macclesfield Town

Macclesfield Town appoint Sol Campbell as manager

By Press Association

15:05 · TUE November 27, 2018

Sol Campbell has taken his first job in management with League Two's bottom side Macclesfield.

The former England, Tottenham and Arsenal defender has signed an 18-month deal with the Silkmen, who have been looking for a new boss since the departure of Mark Yates last month and sit seven points adrift of safety.

Campbell was pictured at the club's Moss Rose ground on Tuesday morning, and a couple of hours later Town tweeted a picture of a bottle of Sol with the caption "drink anyone?" before confirming the news.

The 44-year-old has made no secret of his desire to become a manager and has spoken out on a number of occasions about the barriers for aspiring Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) coaches.

Campbell, who retired from playing in 2012 after a career that brought him two Premier League titles, three FA Cups and 73 England caps, had a spell as assistant manager of the Trinidad and Tobago national team and recently spent 10 days working alongside England Under-21s manager Aidy Boothroyd.

Campbell was invited to help out at St George's Park as the Football Association bids to address the issue of under-representation of BAME coaches in the game.

"It's hard to call it a scheme, because it's more a door-opening or an opportunity," Campbell told the FA's official website.

"You shouldn't label it a scheme because football should be the winner, so talent or opportunity is what it's bringing to England and they are addressing it because it's been a long time."

The likes of Iffy Onuora, Terry Connor, Kieron Dyer and Titus Bramble have all spent time coaching across England's different age groups and Campbell believes it is a step in the right direction.

"Now, they're welcoming everybody into the fold and there's also some more players to come back who are retired or are retiring to do their courses and see what's happening," he said.

"The more (BAME) guys who qualify for their coaching badges at B, A and Pro, the better it is. The main thing is that the pathways are there and that's key and the FA are addressing that."

Campbell said the England set-up had undergone "massive change" since he won the last of his senior caps in 2007.

"It's been an eye opener but I've really enjoyed it," he said. "There's the games and things like that, but there's a lot of stuff behind the scenes which the FA put a lot of effort and funds into.

"Things like psychology and making sure the players are on it, everything from diet and support staff and things like that, it's a lot of stuff for Under-21s."

Campbell, who also made nearly 100 appearances for Portsmouth and had brief spells at Notts County and Newcastle, added: "The best moment for me was when I actually got on the pitch and I was a part of the sessions.

"There's things you have to do yourself and it's given me the confidence to know that I've got the tools, but I just need to get a situation and a nice gig somewhere."

Macclesfield face Exeter at St James Park on Tuesday evening.

✅ It's official - Sol Campbell has been named the new Macclesfield Town manager on an 18-month contract. https://t.co/w2iDWGS84K
— Sporting Life Football (@SportingLifeFC) November 27, 2018

Campbell is not the first former Three Lion to make the step up to management and, here, we look at a few others.

Gareth Southgate

Southgate was handed his first managerial role at Middlesbrough in June 2006 and kept Boro in the top flight before he was sacked following their relegation three years later. He went on to manage England Under-21s from August 2013, with the team qualifying impressively for the European Under-21 Championship, but they were knocked out in the group stages. Southgate then impressed as caretaker manager for the senior England side following Sam Allardyce's brief reign and landed the job on a permanent basis. He won the hearts of the nation earlier this summer, leading England to the World Cup semi-finals in Russia, before guiding the Three Lions to the Nations League Finals.

Phil Neville

The 41-year-old's appointment as England women's head coach in January drew criticism due to his lack of managerial experience. Despite coaching at Manchester United and Valencia, prior to getting the job, Neville had only ever been in charge of a team once - for Salford City, the club he co-owns - and he

had no experience in the women's game. He also had to apologise after sexist tweets he sent several years earlier came to light.

Gary Neville

The former Manchester United right-back was added to the England senior team coaching staff by manager Roy Hodgson in May 2012. He was part of the backroom team for Euro 2012 and worked as Hodgson's assistant at the 2014 World Cup and subsequent qualifying campaign for the 2016 European Championships. Eyebrows were raised in December 2015 when he got the head coach's job at Valencia, despite not being fluent in Spanish. His disastrous spell in charge of the LaLiga club lasted just four months and included a 7-0 thrashing by Barcelona in the Copa del Rey.

Alan Shearer

The Premier League's top goal-scorer turned down a coaching role with England in 2006 and similar jobs at former club Newcastle in the following years. It was a surprise when the Magpies offered him the manager's job in April 2009 for the remaining eight matches of the season. Shearer was unable to keep Newcastle in the Premier League and they were relegated on the final day of the season after a 1-0 defeat at Aston Villa.

Steven Gerrard

The ex-Liverpool midfielder took on his first management role at Rangers in May. The 38-year-old had spent a brief spell coaching the Liverpool Under-18s and was thought to have had offers in England, but opted to move north of the border. He has transformed Rangers into a more resilient side and, like he did as a player, had success in Europe.

Frank Lampard

The former Chelsea midfielder was appointed at Derby in May, replacing Gary Rowett who left for Championship rivals Stoke. Enlisting the help of Jody Morris and Shay Given, Lampard put his faith in youth and brought in the likes of Mason Mount and Harry Wilson on loan. Despite suffering a few bumps along the way, Lampard soon got Derby playing free-flowing football, leading them up the Championship table and pulling off a stunning Carabao Cup win at Manchester United.