Long-serving Blues academy coach, former assistant boss and three-time caretaker-manager Bryan Klug is being targeted by Norwich City, TWTD understands.
The Canaries’ head of football development Dean Rastrick worked with Klug during his spell at Tottenham’s academy and is believed to be behind the move, which we understand isn’t linked to Liam Manning, who played and coached under Klug in the Town academy, being lined-up to take over as manager at Carrow Road.
Klug, 64, was a young player at Town during the Bobby Robson era and won England youth caps but moved on before making a senior appearance with injuries having hampered his progress.
Following spells with Wimbledon (loan), Chesterfield, Peterborough and in non-league, he returned to Town as a youth coach in 1987 and was named academy director on its inception in 1998.
During this period, Klug helped the Blues bring through the likes of Richard Wright, Titus Bramble, Kieron Dyer, James Scowcroft, Richard Naylor, players who were key men in George Burley’s squad which eventually went on to win promotion in 1999/00 and then finished fifth in the Premier League the following season, with the likes of Darren Bent, Darren Ambrose, Ian Westlake, Dean Bowditch and Matt Richards following them into the first team.
In 2005, the U18s won the FA Youth Cup, emulating the Town youth sides of the 1970s.
Jim Magilton made him his assistant when he took over as boss in 2006, before he took on a role as head of football development in January 2009.
After being sacked by Roy Keane in January 2010, he joined Tottenham as assistant academy manager before returning to the Blues and his previous position as academy director in June 2012.
In 2016, he moved to a new job as head of coaching and player development, one which meant he was involved more on the training field, as Lee O’Neill took over the more administrative academy director’s role.
While at Town, Klug has served as caretaker-manager following the departures of Jim Magilton, Mick McCarthy and Paul Hurst.
Coventry-born Klug has remained in that position, but with most of the pre-takeover Town academy staff having moved on, his likely departure is not unexpected.