| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | John Matthew Deehan | ||
| Date of birth | (1957-08-06)6 August 1957 (age 67) | ||
| Place of birth | Solihull, England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Striker | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1975–1979 | Aston Villa | 110 | (40) |
| 1979–1981 | West Bromwich Albion | 47 | (5) |
| 1981–1986 | Norwich City | 162 | (62) |
| 1986–1988 | Ipswich Town | 49 | (11) |
| 1988–1990 | Manchester City | 0 | (0) |
| 1990 | Barnsley | 11 | (2) |
| Total | 379 | (120) | |
| International career | |||
| 1976 | England Youth | 2 | (1) |
| 1977–1979 | England U21 | 7 | (6) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1994–1995 | Norwich City | ||
| 1995–1998 | Wigan Athletic | ||
| 2002 | Aston Villa(caretaker) | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
John Matthew Deehan (born 6 August 1957) is an English former football manager and player.
During his playing career he was afootballer from 1975 until 1990 and is most well known for his spells as a striker forAston Villa andNorwich City. He also played forWest Bromwich Albion,Ipswich Town,Manchester City andBarnsley. He was also capped seven times atEngland U21 level, scoring six goals.
Since retiring Deehan initially returned to Norwich as a coach and had a spell as manager during their 1994/95Premier League campaign before later managingWigan Athletic to aDivision Three title and a caretaker spell in charge ofAston Villa. He has since held roles as the director of football ofNorthampton Town,Lincoln City,Grimsby Town andPlymouth Argyle, as well as actively being part of the coaching staff atKettering Town andSheffield Wednesday.
Born inSolihull, as a player Deehan was a striker who is best known for productive spells withAston Villa andNorwich City. With Villa he was a member of the team that won the1977 Football League Cup Final against Everton and was a member of the Norwich sides which won the1985 Football League Cup Final and the Second Division championship in 1986. On 24 January 2012 he was appointed as Director of Football at League Two clubPlymouth Argyle. Argyle stood at 22nd in League Two at the time of his appointment.
He was a competent goalscorer from an early age, breaking the 10-goal barrier in the league for three successive seasons by the age of 22.[2] He was initially less successful after leavingVilla Park in September 1979 to sign for Villa's local rivals West Bromwich Albion, managing just five goals from 47 league games over the next two years, but recaptured his form after joining Norwich City in December 1981 and helping them seal promotion to the First Division that season. He scored 20 league goals in his firstfull season atCarrow Road and managed 15 and 13 goals over the next two seasons, although he was unable to save the Canaries from relegation in1984–85. He also helped them win theFootball League Cup in 1985 and the Second Division title - and a return to the First Division as Second Division champions a year later.
In 2002, Norwich fans voted Deehan into theNorwich City F.C. Hall of Fame in recognition of his contribution as a player.[3]
In the summer of 1986, he left Norwich to joinIpswich Town in a player exchange deal that sawTrevor Putney move toCarrow Road. Hisfinal season at Norwich had seen him collected aSecond Division title medal, but his form was less impressive than in previous seasons with just four goals from 26 league games.[4]
From 1988 until 1990 he was player-coach atManchester City, where he worked under the management of former Norwich assistantMel Machin, before returning to Norwich City asMike Walker's assistant in the summer of 1992.
He helped coach an unfancied Canaries side to a surprise third-place finish in the inauguralFA Premier League (season 1992–93), and was promoted to the manager's seat the following January when Walker moved toEverton. Norwich finished 12th in the Premiership in 1993-94 and started the following season reasonably well despite the (then) record English sale ofChris Sutton toBlackburn Rovers for £5 million. Despite the loss of Sutton, and the sale ofEfan Ekoku shortly afterwards, the Canaries were seventh in the Premiership by Christmas and were in contention for aUEFA Cup place. An injury to goalkeeperBryan Gunn then sparked a dramatic loss of form, and by the time the Canaries lost 3–0 toNewcastle United on 8 April 1995, they were heading for the relegation zone. Deehan then stepped down as manager and handed the reins to his assistantGary Megson, but Megson was unable to stave off relegation.[5]
Deehan's absence from football did not last long. He began the 1995–96 season as manager ofWigan Athletic in theFootball League Third Division, and after two seasons at the helm he guided them to the Division Three title and promotion toDivision Two. After safeguarding Wigan's survival in 1997–98, he accepted the assistant manager's job atSheffield United and for one season worked underSteve Bruce. Bruce's time atBramall Lane was unsuccessful and Deehan resigned alongside him.[6]
After leaving Sheffield United, Deehan worked again with Steve Bruce at Huddersfield Town, in the 1999–2000 season. After leaving the Yorkshire club, he made a football comeback withAston Villa when he was appointed assistant manager toJohn Gregory in July 2001.[7] In January 2002, Deehan was named joint caretaker manager of Villa (withStuart Gray) when Gregory resigned. He left the club whenGraham Taylor was named Villa manager for the second time.
In October 2003, Deehan became Director of Football atNorthampton Town, withColin Calderwood working under him as team manager. The duo were appointed to get the team promoted from the league's basement division, and achieved this aim in the 2005–06 season. Both Calderwood and Deehan left the club at the end of the 2005–06 season, with Deehan moving toLincoln City as Director of Football. On 15 October 2007, it was confirmed that Deehan and Lincoln City managerJohn Schofield had left the club.[8] In November 2007, Deehan was employed as a scout by Premier League sideBolton Wanderers who were looking for a number of former professionals to head their recruitment drive led by formerEverton managerColin Harvey.[9]
In September 2008, Deehan expressed interest in the vacant manager's post at League Two sideGrimsby Town, saying: "I think Grimsby Town is a good club and a good opportunity for any manager. Whenever I've been to Blundell Park, I've been impressed with the set-up and the positive approach to football."[10] Despite his interest Deehan failed to land the Grimsby job, which was given toMike Newell.
On 21 January 2009, he was appointed as Chief Scout of Norwich City Football Club in part of the new management team alongside three of his former players –Bryan Gunn as First Team Manager,Ian Crook as first team coach[11] and Ian Butterworth as Assistant Manager.
In December 2009, Deehan becameLee Harper's assistant atKettering Town but was controversially sacked later that month immediately following a 5–1 defeat toLeeds United in an FA Cup second-round replay where his choice of substitutions during extra time were blamed by Kettering owner Imraan Ladak for the defeat.[12][13]
On 17 March 2010, he was announced as Head of Recruitment (Director of Football) atGrimsby Town in order to work with managerNeil Woods and his assistantChris Casper. It was touted that Deeham would be a possible replacement for Woods if the club are relegated from the Football League. However, after the conclusion of the 09/10 season, which eventually brought relegation, Deehan's contract was not renewed and he left the club 20 May 2010.[14]
On 25 January 2012, Deehan was appointed Director of Football atPlymouth Argyle. At the end of the 2012–2013 season he left the club. He teamed up with Stuart Gray again early in 2014, joining the coaching staff atSheffield Wednesday. He left the club in June 2015 after Gray's dismissal.[15]
In 2016, Deehan joinedSolihull Moors' academy coaching staff.[16]
In March 2022, his family said that for the last 6 years Deehan has been battling with dementia.[17]
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