Simon Davies (footballer, born 1974)
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Simon Ithel Davies (born 23 April 1974) is a Welsh professional
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
coach and former player who is currently the Head of Coaching Methodology at Tottenham Hotspur's academy. As a player, he was a midfielder who notably played in the Premier League for
Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
, where he was part of the famous 1992 youth team. He later played in The Football League for Exeter City, Huddersfield Town, Luton Town,
Macclesfield Town Macclesfield Town Football Club was an English professional association football, football club based in Macclesfield, Cheshire, that was liquidation, wound-up after a High Court of Justice, High Court ruling on 16 September 2020. Initially kno ...
and Rochdale. He wound up his playing days in the Welsh Premier League with
Bangor City Bangor City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Bangor) are an inactive Welsh football club from the City of Bangor, Gwynedd. They started the 2021–22 season in the Cymru North the second level of the Welsh football league system, but ...
,
Total Network Solutions The New Saints of Oswestry Town & Llansantffraid Football Club, also known as The New Saints ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed y Seintiau Newydd) or TNS, are a professional football club that currently play in the Cymru Premier. They are the most successfu ...
, Rhyl and Airbus UK. He was capped once for Wales, in a match against
Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
in 1996. Davies went into coaching towards the end of his career, where he was a youth team coach at Chester City. He was caretaker manager of the club in 2007 and 2008. In 2010, Davies joined
Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
where he eventually became the EDS manager and the Head of the Youth Academy. In 2019 he joined the coaching staff at Anderlecht and briefly managed the club before relinquishing his duties and reverting to his previous role. In August 2022, Davies became Head of Coaching Methodology at Tottenham Hotspur's academy.


Playing career

During his career he played for a few English clubs in the 1990s, after starting out at
Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
. He scored the opening goal in a 4–0 Champions League win against Galatasaray and played 20 first team games for the club, although he failed to add any more goals. He was part of an acclaimed batch of youngsters to come through the United ranks in this period, after winning the
FA Youth Cup The Football Association Youth Challenge Cup is an English football competition run by The Football Association for under-18 sides. Only those players between the age of 15 and 18 on 31 August of the current season are eligible to take part. It ...
in 1992, with his colleagues who lifted the trophy including
David Beckham David Robert Joseph Beckham (; born 2 May 1975) is an English former professional footballer, the current president and co-owner of Inter Miami CF and co-owner of Salford City. Known for his range of passing, crossing ability and bending fr ...
, Nicky Butt and Gary Neville. Although born in England, Davies was capped for the
Welsh national team ) , Association = Football Association of Wales (FAW) , Confederation = UEFA (Europe) , Coach = Rob Page , Captain = Gareth Bale , Most caps = Gareth Bale (111) , Top scorer = Gareth Bal ...
against
Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
in 1996. After leaving Manchester United for Luton Town in a £150,000 deal in August 1997, Davies struggled to recapture his early promise and his league career was to end with spells with
Macclesfield Town Macclesfield Town Football Club was an English professional association football, football club based in Macclesfield, Cheshire, that was liquidation, wound-up after a High Court of Justice, High Court ruling on 16 September 2020. Initially kno ...
and Rochdale. He then crossed the Welsh border, becoming Peter Davenport's first signing at
Bangor City Bangor City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Bangor) are an inactive Welsh football club from the City of Bangor, Gwynedd. They started the 2021–22 season in the Cymru North the second level of the Welsh football league system, but ...
in the Welsh Premier League in 2001. He was named as the Welsh Premier League's player of the season in 2002–03. He also played for Rhyl and
Total Network Solutions The New Saints of Oswestry Town & Llansantffraid Football Club, also known as The New Saints ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed y Seintiau Newydd) or TNS, are a professional football club that currently play in the Cymru Premier. They are the most successfu ...
and would briefly join Airbus UK.


Coaching and management

In 2006, Davies joined the coaching staff at Chester City, predominantly as part of the youth set-up. In April 2007, he was appointed as the club's caretaker manager after the departure of Mark Wright. He took charge for the final game of the season, as Chester lost 2–0 at Lincoln City. Despite the loss, Davies was offered an interview for the job on a permanent basis but Bobby Williamson was subsequently appointed, although Davies remained at the club as youth team manager. The following March, Davies was again appointed as Chester's caretaker manager following Williamson's sacking. Despite losing his two games in caretaker charge, Davies was named manager until the end of the season on 11 March 2008. His first win followed in a 2–1 success against
Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town. In the 19th century, Darlington underwen ...
on 22 March and Chester went on to clinch survival in their penultimate match of the season with a 0–0 draw against Stockport County. A few days earlier, Davies celebrated his 34th birthday with a new two-year contract at the club. Davies endured a difficult start to the 2008–09 season, with Chester conceding six to both
Dagenham & Redbridge Dagenham & Redbridge Football Club is a professional association football club based in Dagenham, Greater London, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. Often known simply as Dag ...
and Rochdale in the first three months of the season and making early exits from all three cup competitions. He was sacked on 10 November 2008. Exactly a month later, it was announced Davies had returned to Chester as youth team manager. In 2010, Davies joined
Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
as part of their youth coaching programme. From 2013 to 2015, he was assistant to EDS manager Patrick Vieira. In January 2016, Davies succeeded Vieira as manager, when the Frenchman left the club to join New York City. He left the position in 2018 to become Head of Academy Coaching, with specific focus on the younger age groups. In July 2019, Davies joined
Vincent Kompany Vincent Jean Mpoy Kompany (; ; born 10 April 1986) is a Belgian professional football manager and former player who played as a centre-back and is the current manager of EFL Championship club Burnley. He most notably played for Manchester City f ...
as part of the coaching set-up at
Anderlecht Anderlecht (, ) is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the south-western part of the region, it is bordered by the City of Brussels, Forest, Molenbeek-Saint-Jean, and Saint-Gilles, as well as the ...
. On 22 August, Davies became the head coach after Kompany decided to step down from managerial duties to focus primarily on being a player. Davies's first match in charge was a 1–0 loss to Genk, and his second brought Anderlecht their first win of the season, 1–0 over Standard Liège. However, in his next three games, he oversaw two defeats to
Club Brugge (), known simply as Club Brugge (in English also: ''Club Bruges''), is a Belgian professional football club based in Bruges, Belgium. It was founded in 1891 and its home ground is the Jan Breydel Stadium, which has a capacity of 29,062.
and Royal Antwerp and a goalless draw against Waasland-Beveren. On 3 October, Davies was demoted back to assistant manager, with the club appointing former manager Franky Vercauteren. According to journalist Kristof Terreur, Davies was seen as a " yes man". On 12 August 2022, Davies was appointed to the new role of Head of Coaching Methodology at Tottenham Hotspur's academy.


Career statistics


Honours

Manchester United *
FA Youth Cup The Football Association Youth Challenge Cup is an English football competition run by The Football Association for under-18 sides. Only those players between the age of 15 and 18 on 31 August of the current season are eligible to take part. It ...
: 1991–92 Individual * Welsh Premier League Player of the Season: 2002–03


References


External links

* *
Welsh Premier League profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davies, Simon 1974 births Living people People from Winsford Welsh footballers Wales international footballers English footballers English people of Welsh descent Manchester United F.C. players Exeter City F.C. players Huddersfield Town A.F.C. players Luton Town F.C. players Macclesfield Town F.C. players Rochdale A.F.C. players Premier League players English Football League players Chester City F.C. managers R.S.C. Anderlecht managers Welsh football managers Cymru Premier players The New Saints F.C. players Bangor City F.C. players Rhyl F.C. players Airbus UK Broughton F.C. players Manchester City F.C. non-playing staff Tottenham Hotspur F.C. non-playing staff Sportspeople from Cheshire Association football midfielders Association football coaches