Stephen McManus calls time on playing career for coaching role with Motherwell
Monday 14 August 2017 17:53, UK
Former Celtic and Scotland defender Stephen McManus has retired and will begin a new chapter in his career as a coach role with Motherwell's academy.
The 34-year-old made more than 450 senior appearances in a 14-year career which also included spells at Middlesbrough and Bristol City.
He played for Motherwell this season, putting in the full 90 minutes in the 2-1 League Cup win at Edinburgh City, but will now focus on coaching the youngsters at Fir Park.
"Obviously when it comes to the point where you are going to officially retire from playing, you always do so with a bit of a heavy heart," he said.
"However, I've given this a lot of thought and I believe this is the right time for me, particularly with the club giving me this opportunity in a new era for academies in Scotland.
"I am also very excited to be learning from the great coaching staff we have at Motherwell at the moment; that was the main attraction for me. I want to develop myself as a coach and this is a wonderful opportunity.
"I want to thank the fans of every club I've played for, particularly at 'Well where I've enjoyed myself tremendously over the past five seasons. I now look forward to the next chapter in my career."
Motherwell manager Stephen Robinson added: "We are absolutely delighted to be bringing someone like Stephen on to our staff as he will be a huge asset to the club.
"He's a former Celtic and Scotland captain and has played almost 500 career games; that's a wealth of experience that our younger players now have at their disposal.
"It was a massive decision for him personally and it's a real testament to Stephen as a guy that he wants to make this step at this stage of his life.
"I believe he'll make a tremendous coach one day and he's doing it in the correct way, getting his badges and doing the hard work on the training ground first."
