 Monk playing forSwansea City in 2010 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Garry Alan Monk[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1979-03-06)6 March 1979 (age 46)[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Bedford, England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)[1] | ||
| Position | Centre back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –1995 | Torquay United | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1995–1996 | Torquay United | 5 | (0) |
| 1996–2004 | Southampton | 11 | (0) |
| 1998 | →Torquay United (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| 1999 | →Stockport County (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 2001 | →Oxford United (loan) | 5 | (0) |
| 2002–2003 | →Sheffield Wednesday (loan) | 15 | (0) |
| 2003–2004 | →Barnsley (loan) | 14 | (0) |
| 2004 | Barnsley | 3 | (0) |
| 2004–2014 | Swansea City | 220 | (3) |
| Total | 281 | (3) | |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2014–2015 | Swansea City | ||
| 2016–2017 | Leeds United | ||
| 2017 | Middlesbrough | ||
| 2018–2019 | Birmingham City | ||
| 2019–2020 | Sheffield Wednesday | ||
| 2024–2025 | Cambridge United | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Garry Alan Monk (born 6 March 1979[1]) is an Englishfootballmanager and former professional player who was most recently the head coach ofEFL League Two clubCambridge United.
Monk, acentre back, began his playing career withTorquay United before joiningSouthampton. In nearly eight years, he rarely appeared for the club, instead spending timeon loan at Torquay United,Stockport County,Oxford United,Sheffield Wednesday andBarnsley. In 2004 he signed forLeague Two clubSwansea City, and over the next ten years played for them in all four divisions of fully professional football, for the majority of that time as captain, made 270 appearances in all competitions, and was a member of their2013 League Cup final-winning team.
He began his managerial career with Swansea City, and later took charge ofLeeds United,Middlesbrough,Birmingham City andSheffield Wednesday before joining Cambridge United in March 2024.
Born inBedford, Bedfordshire,[1] Monk began his career as a trainee withTorquay United, making five appearances during the1995–96 season, whilst still a trainee after growing up in Torquay for the majority of his youth. At the end of that season he moved toSouthampton to complete his apprenticeship and turned professional with them in May 1997.[2]
Monk returned to Torquay on loan in September 1998 and on returning toThe Dell immediately broke into the first team squad, making his first team debut againstDerby County on 28 November 1998 in place of the injuredKen Monkou. In September 1999, he had a loan spell atStockport County, before being recalled to the first team for two matches in January 2000.[2]
He later had a loan spell atOxford United (in January 2001), but was recalled from Oxford byGlenn Hoddle owing to an injury crisis amongst the Southampton defenders. In May 2001, he started in both of the last two home matches at The Dell, againstManchester United andArsenal, both of which resulted in victories.[2]
Monk had a longer loan spell withSheffield Wednesday (from December 2002 to 20 March) with a view to a permanent transfer, which failed to materialise after Wednesday's relegation to Division Two.[2] He eventually left the Saints in February 2004, signing forBarnsley on a free transfer, having been on loan for the previous three months. He struggled to settle in atOakwell, but scored his first career goal in a 2–1 homeFA Cup win againstBristol City on 16 December,[3] and moved toSwansea City on a free transfer in June 2004.
Monk made his debut for Swansea on 7 August 2004 in their 0–2 defeat toNorthampton Town atVetch Field on the first day of the newLeague Two season.[4] On 4 September, he was given a straight red card in the 84th minute of the match away toYeovil Town, for conceding a penalty onPhil Jevons, converted byGavin Williams for the only goal of the match.[5] Monk was again sent off on 20 November in a 0–2 defeat atShrewsbury Town for pushing over referee Eddie Ellans in the 43rd minute; teammateAndy Robinson was also dismissed two minutes later.[6] He received a third red card on 8 February 2005 for two bookings in a minute during a 0–1 defeat atMansfield Town.[7] Swansea finished the season with promotion toLeague One.[citation needed]
On 22 November 2005, Monk scored his first goal for Swansea, heading their third as they reached the quarter-final of theFootball League Trophy with a 4–0 win overRushden & Diamonds at theLiberty Stadium.[8] The first league goal of his career came on 14 January 2006, opening a 1–1 draw away toBradford City from Robinson's corner just before half time.[9] Swansea defeatedBrentford in the play-off semi-finals, but lost in a penalty shootout toBarnsley in the final at theMillennium Stadium on 27 May. Monk played the full 120 minutes in the final, and put in the cross from whichRory Fallon equalised with anoverhead kick.[10]
In August 2006, following the release ofRoberto Martínez, it was announced he Monk become the captain for the forthcoming season. However, just two matches into the2006–07 season, he picked up acruciate ligament injury in an innocuous-looking challenge withScunthorpe strikerAndy Keogh, which ruled him out for the whole campaign and with his contract running out at the end of the season his future was in doubt.[citation needed]
Monk returned to the team at the beginning of the 2007–08 season asskipper, captaining the Swans to promotion to thesecond tier of English football for the first time in 24 years. Monk lifted his first piece of silverware as Swansea captain as the team sealed promotion as League One champions with a club record 92 points.[11] He contributed one goal during the campaign, a header in a 3–2 home win overLeeds United.[12]
The 2008–09 season brought Monk a new central defensive partner inAshley Williams, signed fromStockport County towards the end of the previous campaign, asAlan Tate was dropped from the side. On 9 August, the opening day of the Championship season, Monk was sent off for a foul onMatt Holland in a 0–2 defeat toCharlton Athletic atThe Valley.[13] His only goal of the season was the home winner againstBristol City on 18 April 2009, heading inAndrea Orlandi's corner after 25 minutes.[14] In their first season back in the Championship, Swansea finished 8th.
In the 2009–10 season, Swansea missed out on a Championship play-off place on the final day of the season. On 11 August, in the first round of theLeague Cup, Monk headed Swansea's first goal of a 3–0 win overBrighton & Hove Albion.[15] Two weeks later, he was one of three Swansea players sent off – alongsideÀngel Rangel andGorka Pintado – as the team lost 1–2 after extra time at home againstScunthorpe United in the second round.[16] FollowingPaulo Sousa's exit to join Championship rivalsLeicester City, Monk criticised his former manager, saying his tactics and training methods were not good enough.[17] Monk's 2012 autobiographyLoud, Proud and Positive would later reveal that the Portuguese manager and his captain rarely saw eye to eye.[18]
The 2010–11 season started well, as Monk played every match until picking up an injury againstColchester United in the FA Cup on 8 January 2011.[19] He would soon return to the side, however, and captain the Swans to a place in thePremier League via aChampionship play-off final win againstReading. Monk's contribution would be rewarded with a new three-year contract, keeping him at the club until 2014.[20]
On 6 February 2013, Monk signed a one-year contract extension at Swansea, keeping him at the club until June 2015.[21] Later that month, Monk won the first major trophy of his career as Swansea, under managerMichael Laudrup, beatBradford City 5–0 in the2013 League Cup final atWembley Stadium. Monk lifted the cup together withAshley Williams after coming on as a 62nd-minute substitute forKi Sung-yueng in the final in a 5–0 win againstBradford City.[22]
After making only 15 appearances across all competitions in the 2012–13 season, 11 of which were in the Premier League, Monk passed Swansea captaincy on toAshley Williams, who had worn it in Monk's absences during the previous two years.[23]
On 4 February 2014, Monk was appointed by chairmanHuw Jenkins as interimplayer-manager following the sacking of managerMichael Laudrup.[24] His first match in charge was theSouth Wales derby on 8 February againstCardiff City, which Swansea won 3–0 with all three goals scored in the second half. After finishing second in theirEuropa League Group A behindValencia, Swansea reached the round of 32, in which they were knocked out byRafa Benítez'sNapoli side after losing 3–1 on aggregate.[25]
Swansea survived a relegation battle and secured safety with one match to spare.[26] Monk became the permanent manager of Swansea City on 7 May 2014, ending his playing career and signing a three-year contract.[27]
In the opening match of the 2014–15 season, Monk led Swansea to a 2–1 away win againstManchester United, the club's first ever league win atOld Trafford.[28] The Swans continued their positive start to the league season with two home wins againstBurnley andWest Bromwich Albion, a run of results which saw Swansea sit joint top of the Premier League table and Monk pick up thePremier League Manager of the Month for August.
After Swansea's 2–1 defeat toStoke City on 19 October 2014, Monk claimed that Stoke'sVictor Moses had dived for a penalty, and said it was "disgusting" of refereeMichael Oliver to award it. Although interviewed by the FA and warned about his conduct in media interviews, Monk was not charged over these statements.[29]
On 11 May 2015, Swansea recorded the double overArsenal, making the Swans only the third side in Premier League history to have won home and away against both Arsenal and Manchester United in the same season.[30][31] The Swans ended the season in eighth position with a record points tally.[32]
Monk signed a new three-year contract in July 2015.[33]
After 12 years association with the club, Monk was sacked by Swansea on 9 December 2015 following a run of one win in 11 Premier League matches, which left the club 15th in the table.[34] As a result of Monk's sacking, coachesPep Clotet,James Beattie andKristian O'Leary also left the club.[35]
On 2 June 2016, Monk was appointed head coach of Championship clubLeeds United on a one-year rolling contract, replacing previous head coachSteve Evans.[36]
Monk made his first signing as Leeds head coach on 28 June 2016, with the addition of Swedish strikerMarcus Antonsson for a fee around £2 million.[37][38] On 7 August, Monk's first match in charge of Leeds was againstQ.P.R. in a 3–0 defeat on the opening day of The Championship season.[39][40] Monk's first victory came in the following match on 10 August with a 5–4 penalty shootout victory for Leeds after a 2–2 draw after extra time againstFleetwood Town.[41][42]
In November 2016, after guiding Leeds to sixth place and into theChampionship play-off positions and also the quarter-finals of the EFL League Cup, Monk was nominated for theChampionship Manager of the Month award for October; however, he narrowly missed out with the award going toNewcastle United'sRafa Benitez.[43]
On 29 November 2016, Monk's Leeds were knocked out of theEFL Cup after losing a quarter-final match againstJürgen Klopp'sLiverpool atAnfield in a 2–0 defeat, however Leeds had put on an impressive performance against the then Premier League leaders[44] After beating Brentford 1–0 on 17 December, Monk's Leeds were 5th in the playoff positions in the Championship during Christmas 2016, which had been their highest position at this time of the season sinceSimon Grayson's Leeds side in 2010.
After making several changes to his team, Monk's Leeds side suffered a shockFA Cup exit on 29 January 2017 to the hands ofSutton United after suffering a 1–0 defeat.[45] On 27 February, Monk received a touchline ban after a pitchside spat withHuddersfield Town managerDavid Wagner, with Monk blocking Wagner's run, after Wagner ran across the pitch to celebrate a goal with his players, the spat started a pitch side tussle between players and staff of both clubs.[46][47]
After beating Brighton 2–0 on 19 March 2017, Leeds were firmly in the playoff positions and in the hunt for automatic promotion, having pulled 11 points clear of 7th place.[48] However, after a dramatic loss of form in the final 8 matches of the season, Leeds mathematically missed out on the playoffs on the final day of the season, finishing in 7th place after being overtaken byFulham.[49]
After the takeover of Leeds byAndrea Radrizzani two days earlier,[50] and the day before Leeds were set to activate a 1-year contract extension with the option of exploring a longer-term deal, on 25 May, Monk resigned as Leeds United head coach, with Radrizzani saying that Monk's decision to quit the club had been a 'shock'.[51][52]
On 9 June 2017, Monk was appointed as the manager of newly relegatedChampionship clubMiddlesbrough,[53] replacing caretaker manager,Steve Agnew.[54] Upon his appointment, Monk stated that he aimed to have the club promoted immediately back to thePremier League.[55]
Monk's first signings for the club came on 7 July, when he signedCyrus Christie fromDerby County andJonny Howson fromNorwich City.[56][57] Two days later, he brought inMartin Braithwaite fromToulouse,[58] and later secured the signing ofBritt Assombalonga fromNottingham Forest.[59]
His first game as manager came on 12 July 2017 in a goalless draw againstOxford United inAlbufeira, Portugal.[60][61] Later that month, Monk brought inDarren Randolph,[62] andAshley Fletcher,[63] both arriving fromWest Ham United. Later that transfer window, Monk loaned inLewis Baker fromChelsea,[64] andConnor Roberts from Swansea City.[65]
On 23 December 2017, it was announced that Monk had left the club,[66] to be replaced byTony Pulis three days later.[67]
Monk was appointed manager of Championship clubBirmingham City on 4 March 2018. He signed a three-and-a-half-year deal, and became Birmingham's fifth permanent manager in 15 months.[68][69] With the team in danger of relegation, he led them to five wins out of the eleven matches remaining;[70] a final-day defeat of promotion candidatesFulham secured a 19th-place finish. In his post-match interview, Monk insisted that the habitual struggle against relegation was unacceptable, he would be "relentless" in raising the mentality throughout the club, and "whoever is not on board with that won't be here."[71]
He excluded several players, including both senior goalkeepers, from consideration for the2018–19 first team.[72] Operating under anEFL-imposed business plan and with a likely points deduction pending for the club's breaches of the league's Profitability and Sustainability rules,[73] Monk was able to sign one player for a fee and up to five loans or free transfers on wages pitched at a "debilitating" level.[74] After a slow start to the season, four wins in October earned Monk a nomination asChampionship Manager of the Month as the team rose to ninth in the table.[75] According to theBirmingham Mail, he turned them into "a side vastly superior than the sum of its parts" to keep them in the top half of the table until a run of losses in March and a nine-point deduction meant they were again in a relegation battle; they finished 17th.[76]
In June 2019, it was reported that the relationship between Monk and chief executive Xuandong Ren had broken down, with Ren dissatisfied with Monk's playing style and plans for the new season and Monk unhappy at the sale of the creativeJota.[77] After making it clear he would not resign,[78] Monk was sacked on 18 June.[79] A club statement with echoes of Monk's own of a year earlier called for a change in footballing philosophy and stressed the vital importance of "everybody at the club to be sharing the same vision and commitment to the plans and processes."[80]
On 6 September 2019, Monk was appointed as manager atSheffield Wednesday, replacingSteve Bruce who resigned a few months prior. He signed a contract of an unspecified length.[81] In November 2019 when Wednesday were set to play former club Birmingham, now managed by his former assistantPep Clotet, Monk spoke negatively about Clotet in his pre-match press conference in addition to refusing to shake his hand after the match.[82][83] When the two managers faced each other again in the reverse fixture later in the season however, Monk and Clotet shook hands and appeared to settle their differences.[84]On 9 November 2020, he was sacked from Sheffield Wednesday, with the club second-last in the league.[85]
On 4 March 2024, after over three years away from football, Monk was appointed head coach ofCambridge United on a contract until the end of the 2025–26 season.[86]
On 16 February 2025, Monk was announced to have departed the club, withthe U's sitting bottom of the league, eight points from safety.[87]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Torquay United | 1995–96[88] | Third Division | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Southampton | 1996–97[89] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| 1997–98[90] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1998–99[91] | Premier League | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
| 1999–2000[92] | Premier League | 2 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | |||
| 2000–01[93] | Premier League | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2001–02[94] | Premier League | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2002–03[95] | Premier League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2003–04[96] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 | ||
| Torquay United (loan) | 1998–99[91] | Third Division | 6 | 0 | — | — | — | 6 | 0 | |||
| Stockport County (loan) | 1999–2000[92] | First Division | 2 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | ||
| Oxford United (loan) | 2000–01[93] | Second Division | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | 5 | 0 | |||
| Sheffield Wednesday (loan) | 2002–03[95] | First Division | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 15 | 0 | ||
| Barnsley | 2003–04[96] | Second Division | 17 | 0 | 4 | 1 | — | — | 21 | 1 | ||
| Swansea City | 2004–05[97] | League Two | 34 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2[a] | 0 | 41 | 0 |
| 2005–06[98] | League One | 33 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9[b] | 1 | 42 | 2 | |
| 2006–07[99] | League One | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2007–08[100] | League One | 32 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6[a] | 0 | 43 | 1 | |
| 2008–09[101] | Championship | 40 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 46 | 1 | ||
| 2009–10[102] | Championship | 23 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | — | 26 | 1 | ||
| 2010–11[103] | Championship | 29 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3[c] | 0 | 36 | 1 | |
| 2011–12[104] | Premier League | 16 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 18 | 0 | ||
| 2012–13[105] | Premier League | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | — | 15 | 1 | ||
| 2013–14[106] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| Total | 220 | 3 | 14 | 1 | 16 | 2 | 20 | 1 | 270 | 7 | ||
| Career total | 281 | 3 | 19 | 2 | 19 | 2 | 20 | 1 | 339 | 8 | ||
| Team | From | To | Record | Ref. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | Win % | ||||
| Swansea City | 4 February 2014 | 9 December 2015 | 77 | 28 | 17 | 32 | 036.36 | [107] |
| Leeds United | 2 June 2016 | 25 May 2017 | 53 | 25 | 11 | 17 | 047.17 | [107] |
| Middlesbrough | 9 June 2017[53] | 23 December 2017[66] | 26 | 12 | 5 | 9 | 046.15 | [107] |
| Birmingham City | 4 March 2018 | 18 June 2019 | 59 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 032.20 | [107] |
| Sheffield Wednesday | 6 September 2019 | 9 November 2020 | 58 | 18 | 15 | 25 | 031.03 | [107] |
| Cambridge United | 4 March 2024 | 16 February 2025 | 49 | 9 | 13 | 27 | 018.37 | [107] |
| Total | 322 | 111 | 81 | 130 | 034.47 | |||
Swansea City
Individual
Individual
