Former Millwall boss Joe Edwards was considered for the head coach position of a club in the top-flight of French football, according to the latest reports.
The Lions had quite a turbulent 2023/24 campaign as they battled relegation under three different managers. Gary Rowett had been in charge at the start after entering his fifth season of management at The Den.
Despite finishing merely one point outside the play-off in the previous term, Rowett didn’t last long in the new season and left his job after four years at the helm following a run of just one win in five matches, although his side remained only three points off the top-six places.
The Millwall hierarchy decided to take a risk on a young coach who was set to have his first taste of life in the hot seat. 37-year-old Edwards was named as Rowett’s successor and his stint in the dugout got off to a flier as the Lions thrashed fellow relegation-threatened Sheffield Wednesday 4-0 at Hillsborough in what was the club’s largest away victory in six years.
Nevertheless, Edwards’ stint came full circle after just three months in charge as his team were defeated 2-0 at home to the Owls in what was his final game in charge before the board decided to pull the plug on this project. The former Chelsea and Everton assistant manager to Frank Lampard was relieved of his duties and eventually replaced by Neil Harris who managed to keep the club in the division.
Edwards has been out of work ever since but was recently considered by Ligue 1 side Strasbourg as a potential successor for Arsenal legend and ex-Crystal Palace boss Patrick Vieira following his exit earlier this week, according to L’Equipe, via The Daily Record.
The outlet also revealed that the French side were looking for an English manager and one with a history of developing young players, hence why Edwards was discussed internally. However, the club decided that former Hull City head coach Liam Rosenior fitted the bill which will be announced over the coming days.
Writer’s View
Edwards certainly would have fit Strasbourg’s criteria as an English coach with a past in dealing with youngsters as he had worked in the ranks at Chelsea for a number of years before being named as Lampard’s number ‘2’ back in 2019.
Nevertheless, his struggles with Millwall may have put him at a disadvantage when it came to the club making a decision. Ultimately, Rosenior took Hull from near the bottom of the Championship to a play-off push in 18 months while turning the likes of Jaden Philogene, Jacob Greaves and Liam Delap into Premier League quality players.
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