Former Liverpool U23s coach Neil Critchley is set to join Strasbourg as assistant to recently-appointed head coach Gary O’Neil, who also has a Merseyside connection
Ian Doyle Chief Liverpool FC Writer
17:50, 30 Jan 2026
Neil Critchley has joined Strasbourg(Image: Getty Images)
Former Liverpool U23s coach Neil Critchley is poised to join Strasbourg as assistant to newly-appointed head coach Gary O’Neil.
Critchley’s most recent significant role ended with his dismissal as manager of Scottish Premiership team Hearts in April 2025, after a mere six months at the helm. O’Neil, who had a brief stint on the coaching staff at the Liverpool Academy, took over at Strasbourg earlier this month, succeeding Liam Rosenior, who moved on to manage Chelsea following Enzo Maresca’s departure.
Since taking charge, he has led Strasbourg – part of the BlueCo consortium that also owns Chelsea – to three consecutive victories, propelling the team to seventh place in the Ligue 1 table.
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Critchley spent seven years at Kirkby with Liverpool, initially managing the U18s before moving up to oversee the U23s.
He twice stepped in to manage the Reds’ senior team when fixture congestion necessitated fielding essentially an Academy side, suffering a 5-0 defeat at Aston Villa in the League Cup quarterfinal in December 2019, but then leading the team to a memorable 1-0 FA Cup fourth round replay victory against Shrewsbury six weeks later.
A month later, Critchley was appointed Blackpool boss and steered the team to Championship promotion in his first full season.
Gary O’Neil is Strasbourg’s new manager(Image: Getty Images)
“The time I’ve had at Liverpool has been truly special,” said Critchley after leaving the Reds for Blackpool.
“I’ve been incredibly well supported there from Alex Inglethorpe, the Academy manager, and all the staff.
“It’s a truly special football club, and it’s the people that make the football club the place that it is.
“It would have had to have taken something equally as special, if not more, for me to even think about leaving.
“But from the conversations I’ve had here (at Blackpool), I got a really good feeling about the people, where they want the club to go and how they want it to grow.”
Jurgen Klopp added: “I’m really happy for him that he got that opportunity and that he takes it.
“It’s a big club, and hopefully everything will go well.”
The 47-year-old spent four months at Aston Villa as assistant head coach to Steven Gerrard, followed by a short, disappointing tenure at Queens Park Rangers and a second spell at Blackpool that ended abruptly after just 15 months.