Blues manager Kieran McKenna says he has a lot of respect for his Norwich City counterpart Liam Manning ahead of Sunday’s East Anglian derby.

Manning took over as head coach at Norwich, his hometown club, in the summer after leaving Bristol City.

McKenna and Manning, both 39, are bosses with similar CVs after going into coaching comparatively early without having had successful playing careers.

While hip injuries curtailed the Northern Irishman’s on-field ambitions with Spurs, Manning failed to make the grade with Town having come through the academy and ended up back at Playford Road as a coach after a spell in Iceland and having played locally in non-league.

Manning, then in charge of Town’s U16s, left for West Ham’s academy in 2015, before a move to New York City FC as director of coaching, prior to taking his first job as manager at Lommel in Belgium.

In 2021, Manning took over at the MK Dons, then joined Oxford from where he departed for Ashton Gate in 2023.

McKenna says the two know one another well: “He’s someone I’ve a lot of respect for and a lot of time for. It’s maybe easier as a Norwich manager or an Ipswich manager if you don't like your counterpart.

“But he’s someone I’ve got a lot of respect for. He’s worked really hard in his career to get where he’s got to. We have some similarities in our backgrounds, he’s done well at every club that he’s been at, he’s got a good staff with him. 

“He’s also come through some incredibly testing personal circumstances. My respect can only be at the highest possible level to come through that and have the season that he did last year with Bristol City as well.

“He’s a big rival now as the Norwich manager and we’ll hopefully get the better of him on Sunday. But irrespective of that, I think as a person and the career he’s had, he’s got all my respect.”

In addition to Manning - and his wife Fran, who also worked at Town - a number of the Canaries’ backroom staff visiting on Sunday have Blues connections.

Assistant manager Chris Hogg was with the Blues under George Burley and Joe Royle without making a senior appearance before cutting his teeth in coaching at the academy and was an assistant-caretaker-manager under Bryan Klug in 2017/18.

James Krause, a member of Town’s 2005 FA Youth Cup-winning side, is Norwich’s first-team coach analyst.

McKenna, who was surprised to learn he and Manning faced one another in midfield in a Town-Spurs reserves fixture in November 2004, admits it’s unusual for the manager in a derby to have quite such a close connection with the other club.

“Yes, it is, but that is what it is,” he said. “There are some people here who have got fond memories of him. And I’ve been told that we’ve played against each other in a reserve game, which I didn’t realise.

“So, there's a bit of shared connection there with a few staff members between both clubs now, actually. But everyone’s going to be fighting for their club and their result on Sunday.”

Photo: TWTD

EricGatesShinpad added 18:14 - Oct 3 Agent Manning I reckon.... Deep down he knows he is blue and white......
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Gforce added 18:30 - Oct 3 Deep down he is a budgie born and bred.
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Razor added 20:26 - Oct 3 Ok
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bobble added 21:56 - Oct 3 Yawn....
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Linkboy13 added 11:07 - Oct 4 Ive met Liam on a couple of occasions several years ago when he attended local games with his close friend Steve Foley a really nice and sociable chap.
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MVBlue added 13:21 - Oct 4 I clicked when I thought I read McKenna said he had lost respect for Manning. Thought there was a bit of needle and spice. But no the usual respect OK.
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