Former Birmingham City player gets first managerial position

It’s the first time a former midfield player for Birmingham City, who made over 100 appearances for the team, is in senior management.

A former player for Birmingham City has secured his first long-term position in football administration.

Gillingham has named former Blues player Stephen Clemence, who attended St Andrew’s from 2003 to 2007, as their next head coach. After splitting from the former Cardiff City manager last month, the League Two team was searching for a replacement for Neil Harris. They decided to give Clemence his first-ever permanent taste of managerial experience.

He takes over a team that is only one point out of the playoffs and is presently ranked eighth in League Two. Saturday, November 4 at 3 PM marks Clemence’s debut game in command of the team—an FA Cup first-round matchup against Hereford.

During his four and a half seasons at Birmingham, the 45-year-old made 135 appearances after signing from Spurs during the winter transfer window of the 2002–03 season. He played for Birmingham, which finished second in the 2006–07 season under Steve Bruce, who is rumored to have assisted Gillingham in finding a new manager.

After helping the Blues achieve promotion, Clemence left for Leicester City and never returned. During his three years on contract at the King Power Arena, he only made 34 appearances.

Following Bruce’s appointment as Sunderland’s coach in 2010, he ended his playing career. He then went on to coach Hull City, Aston Villa, Sheffield Wednesday, Newcastle United, and West Brom. After serving as Hillsborough’s interim manager until a replacement was found, Clemence again proceeded to Newcastle United, where he remained until his final position as Bruce’s assistant manager at The Hawthorn’s.

In other news, John Eustace, the recently fired boss of Birmingham City, is not eligible for any of the two available Championship positions. Both Millwall and Bristol City are searching for a manager and head coach, respectively. However, according to Bristol reports, Eustace is not expected to be considered for the Ashton Gate position.

Nathan Jones is being seriously considered by Millwall, a South London-based team, but Joe Edwards, the manager of England’s under-20 team, is also a possibility. However, rumors surfaced on Wednesday stating that, should they decide to part company with Paul Warne, Derby County has “set their sights” on the 43-year-old.