| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Liam John Manning[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1985-10-20)20 October 1985 (age 40) | ||
| Place of birth | Norwich, England | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –1999 | Bungay Town | ||
| 1999–2002 | Ipswich Town | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2004–2005 | Ipswich Town | ||
| 2005 | Long Melford | ||
| 2005 | Leiston | ||
| 2005 | Woodbridge Town | ||
| 2005–2006 | Selfoss | ||
| 2006–2008 | Leiston | 63 | (5) |
| 2008 | Woodbridge Town | ||
| 2008 | Wroxham | ||
| 2008–2009 | Melton St Audrey | ||
| 2010 | Ipswich Wanderers | ||
| Managerial career | |||
| 2020–2021 | Lommel | ||
| 2021–2022 | Milton Keynes Dons | ||
| 2023 | Oxford United | ||
| 2023–2025 | Bristol City | ||
| 2025 | Norwich City | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Liam John Manning (born 20 October 1985) is an Englishfootballmanager andcoach who most recently managedEFL Championship clubNorwich City.
Manning played for the academy of his local sideNorwich City before joiningIpswich Town in 2002, where he spent a year as a professional before being released in 2005. Following his release from Ipswich, Manning dropped intonon-league, playing forBishop's Stortford,Long Melford andLeiston, before enjoying a brief spell playing in Iceland forSelfoss.[2]
Upon his return from Iceland, Manning re-signed for Leiston, playing for the club between 2006 and 2008.[3] Manning later returned to Woodbridge, followed by spells withWroxham, Melton St Audrey andIpswich Wanderers, before retiring from football to concentrate on coaching.[2]
Liam Manning worked as an academy coach atIpswich Town before joiningPremier League sideWest Ham United in 2015 as head coach of the club'sU23s.[4]
In 2019, he left to joinCity Football Group, initially as director of coaching withMajor League Soccer sideNew York City FC before later progressing to the role of academy director.[5][6]
Staying within City Football Group, in July 2020, Manning was named head coach ofBelgian First Division B clubLommel SK, where he led the previously bottom of the table side to a third-placed finish at the end of the2020–21 season.[4]
On 13 August 2021, Manning joinedLeague One clubMilton Keynes Dons.[7] On 8 October 2021, after just eleven league games in charge, Manning was namedEFL League One Manager of the Month for September 2021, a month in which he led the club to an unbeaten run of five league games achieving eleven points.[8] He repeated the achievement four months later, being named League One Manager of the Month for January 2022, after a similarly successful period.[9]
At the end of his first season, Manning had led the club to a third-place finish with 89 points andplay-off qualification, having missed out on automatic promotion by a single point. The club however later failed to gain promotion via the play-offs, losing out toWycombe Wanderers over two semi-final legs.[10]
Following a poor start to the season that found his side in the relegation zone, Manning was dismissed on 11 December 2022,[11] having accumulated just fifteen points from twenty matches.[12]
On 11 March 2023, Manning was appointed head coach of League One sideOxford United.[13] An impressive start to the followingseason for the club saw him lead his new club to four wins from five matches, and he was named League One Manager of the Month.[14] Manning left the club in November 2023, after 29 games in charge with the club second in League One.[15]
On 7 November 2023, Manning, together with his assistantChris Hogg, departedOxford United and joinedEFL Championship clubBristol City as the head coach, signing a contract until June 2027.[16][17] He was able to guide the club to a sixth place finish and Play-off qualification in the2024–25 season, but were beaten 6–0 on aggregate bySheffield United.[citation needed]
On 3 June 2025, Manning was appointed head coach ofNorwich City, signing a four-year contract through to the summer of 2029.[18]
He was sacked on 8 November 2025 after a run of 3 draws and no wins from 11 matches, leaving the club 23rd in the league.[19] His final game was a 1–2 loss at home toLeicester City, where Norwich conceded in stoppage time.
Manning favours a high possession, high pressing style of football.[20][21]
He has a reputation for developing young players, having spent much of his early coaching career working with the academy sides of West Ham United, Ipswich Town and New York City FC. Manning is credited as having contributed to the development of England internationalDeclan Rice.[4]
Manning took compassionate leave from Bristol City from 14 October 2024 for an indefinite period of time following the death of his newborn son Theo.[22]
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | Ref | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % | |||||
| Lommel |  | 12 August 2020 | 11 August 2021 | 30 | 14 | 4 | 12 | 58 | 42 | +16 | 046.67 | [23] |
| Milton Keynes Dons |  | 13 August 2021 | 11 December 2022 | 83 | 40 | 15 | 28 | 125 | 91 | +34 | 048.19 | [24] |
| Oxford United | | 11 March 2023 | 7 November 2023 | 29 | 14 | 7 | 8 | 45 | 29 | +16 | 048.28 | [25] |
| Bristol City | | 7 November 2023 | 3 June 2025 | 85 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 100 | 101 | −1 | 034.12 | |
| Norwich City | | 3 June 2025 | 8 November 2025 | 17 | 3 | 3 | 11 | 16 | 27 | −11 | 017.65 | |
| Total | 245 | 101 | 57 | 87 | 344 | 290 | +54 | 041.22 | ||||
Individual