Profile

Paul Cook is the manager of Wigan, after ditching Portsmouth in order to land the job in May 2017, which proved to be a good decision as he went on to win League One.

After a playing career that saw him make over 600 appearances, Cook instantly moved into management in 2006 with Conference side Southport. Unfortunately, it didn't work out and within a year Cook was relinquished of his duties.

Cook jetted off to Ireland, where he picked up the reigns with Sligo Rovers, enjoying a pretty successful tenure at the club - leading them into the UEFA Cup in his second year of full management.

Eventually, Cook gained silverware, winning the League Cup Final, and then back-to-back FAI Cup Finals in 2010 and 2011, highlighting his credentials as an emerging manager.

However, at the beginning of 2012, Accrington Stanley were on the hunt for a new manager and with Cook's history with the club, he was interviewed for the post. Having helped Stanley get promoted to the Football League at the end of his playing days, Cook was offered the manager's post and duly accepted it.

But, before long Cook had ventured off to League Two rivals Chesterfield, with whom he led to the League Two title in 2014 and then the play-offs the following season, before leaving for Portsmouth a year later.

Managerial Career

Paul Cook Quotes

We are not turning these lads into electricians or bricklayers, so we don't send them to work with a screwdriver or a cement mixer. They work with a football, so everywhere they walk around the training ground, they have a ball at their feet.

We must never forget it was the fans who kept this club alive. Somewhere along the line, we have to bring some sanity to the game and often it's the supporters who supply the sanity.