Captain Luke Chambers has admitted he would love to manage Ipswich Town one day after ‘having a look at the job from the inside’.
The central defender is likely to miss the rest of the season after dislocating his shoulder, breaking a rib and fracturing his sternum at Brentford, but has continued to work with the team as part of caretaker manager Bryan Klug’s support team.
Chambers has regularly discussed his desire to go into management one day and, after getting a closer look at what it would involve since the departure of Mick McCarthy, the 32-year-old admitted his appetite has been whetted further.
MORE: ‘Some fans don’t want to hear it but everybody here loved Mick’ - Knudsen
“Bryan and the coaches have had me in all the meetings and it’s certainly whetted my appetite going forward,” Chambers wrote in his column for the matchday programme.
“I’ve said it before but having a look at the job from the ‘inside’, it’s made my mind up completely that I want to test myself as a manager.
“I’d love to have that opportunity here one day. It’s a great club. I’d like to think I have given good service here as a player and I want that to continue. It’s also a great place to gain experience and progress as a coach.”
MORE: Nydam hopes to play in an Ipswich midfield alongside Dozzell and Downes one day
Chambers would also like to see a pathway put in place for young coaches to move through the club and develop into potential Ipswich Town bosses in the future.
“We have an academy here whose job it is to produce players for the first-team, why not have the structure in place to develop managers here as well,” Chambers said.
“We have some really good young coaches here already. You’ve also got people working here like Kieron Dyer and Titus Bramble who have had long careers in the game.
MORE: Nash - McCarthy would have us in top six without injuries – but it’s time to move on
“Cole Skuse is another who wants to progress and move into coaching so why not have that avenue where players can move from playing to coaching here when the time is right.
“The club could be in a position to bring through its own managers in time.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here