Liverpool could be about to raid Manchester United for a ‘highly-rated’ figure, in what’d be another reminder of where the balance of power now lies in the northwest of England.
There’s been plenty of comings and goings behind the scenes at Anfield for the second summer in succession, with Arne Slot’s right-hand man Johnny Heitinga departing to take charge of Ajax and Giovanni van Bronckhorst joining as the 46-year-old’s new assistant.
At academy level, long-serving coaches Barry Lewtas and Marc Bridge-Wilkinson left their roles in charge of the under-21s and under-18s respectively. Rob Page has replaced the former, while the Reds are seemingly getting closer to filling the latter vacancy.
Liverpool in talks to appoint Simon Wiles as under-18 head coach
According to The Athletic, Liverpool are now in ‘advanced talks’ to appoint Manchester United academy coach Simon Wiles as their new under-18s boss.
The 40-year-old is described as a ‘highly-rated’ coach who’d been in charge of the Red Devils’ under-14 side since last September, having previously worked in the first-team setups at Salford City and Fleetwood Town, including brief spells as interim manager at both EFL clubs.
It’s understood that he’ll work alongside long-serving academy coach Anthony Ryan at LFC, with the latter having been promoted from his role in the under-15s to an assistant role with the under-18s. He oversaw the U18s’ win over Connah’s Quay Nomads last weekend.
Appointing Wiles would be hugely satisfying for Liverpool
The departures of two loyal servants in Lewtas and Bridge-Wilkinson came as a blow to the Liverpool academy, but to get in a coach of Page’s experience – he managed Wales at two international tournaments – was a notable coup.
Although Wiles mightn’t have quite as striking a CV, for the Reds to lure a ‘highly-rated’ young coach from their arch-rivals would be immensely satisfying, and it’d also fill an important vacancy in the underage setup on Merseyside.
If the 40-year-old takes the under-18 job at LFC, he’ll be tasked with overseeing the development of prodigious youngsters such as Joe Bradshaw and Josh Sonni-Lambie, both of whom scored in the aforementioned victory over Connah’s Quay Nomads.
Rio Ngumoha is also eligible for that age grade in 2025/26, but the precocious 16-year-old seems likely to be involved with the under-21s and may even get a handful of senior appearances, having dazzled for the first team in the win against Preston on Sunday.
Hopefully Liverpool will manage to lure Wiles from Man United, thus securing an impressive replacement for the long-serving Bridge-Wilkinson.
