Portsmouth announce former Nottingham Forest coach James Barlow as new academy chief, replacing ex-AFC Bournemouth and Liverpool figure

The role had been vacant since Sean O’Driscoll suddenly departed last year.

And Liam Daish’s assistant has been promoted to the role, and will begin duties at the beginning of March.

The Blues had began an intensive search for their new supremo, after it had emerged last October that the former AFC Bournemouth coach was planning on leaving the role – citing personal reasons as to why,

Barlow has experience at clubs such as Nottingham Forest, while spending time working with a number of universities.

But his impressive work as Pompey’s assistant professional development phase coach across the past two years has seen him awarded the opportunity.

Barlow told the club’s official website: ‘I’ll be looking at repurposing our culture, how we coach, who we are and what we pride ourselves on.‘The role also includes coach development and a strong focus on the player development pathway to ensure they are better decision makers and technically capable of progressing into first team football.‘I want to provide a fresh look at things, while supporting the good work that is already ongoing in the academy.‘Having been at the club already, I have those strong working relationships with senior staff and the first team coaches.

‘I think that will help ensure it’s a really smooth transition, without needing time to connect with lots of different people. Now I want to help challenge and inspire in certain areas.‘It’s been almost 20 years since I first went to a Division One game with my dad and granddad, so this is a proud moment for me.

‘I’ve previously been at two of the best universities in a performance coaching capacity at Loughborough and Nottingham.‘But I’ve also been in a first team environment a Boston United and at Nottingham Forest’s academy during their transition period to move into category one.‘And I’ve also worked as an England technical staff member for their futsal side, going to two European competitions.‘I was also a teacher for five years, so I’ve got vast experiences that I think can help with coach development and the player pathway.’

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