Man City face summer manager search as new boss stance on permanent job emerges
Manchester City Women’s team will be searching for a new permanent manager this summer, following the departure of Gareth Taylor on Monday.
Taylor’s nearly five-year tenure at the Joie Stadium concluded with City sitting fourth in the Women’s Super League (WSL), facing the possibility of missing out on Champions League qualification. They are one point behind third-placed Arsenal, having played one more game.
City’s decision came ahead of four consecutive matches against WSL leaders Chelsea, starting with Saturday’s League Cup final. This deprived Taylor of the opportunity to add to his previous League Cup and FA Cup successes with the club. Former manager Nick Cushing, who led City from 2013 to 2020, has returned on an interim basis until the end of the season.
However, the Manchester Evening News reports that Cushing has no intention of taking the job permanently, as he aims to secure a position in the men’s game.
Cushing joined City Football Group’s sister club, New York City FC, in 2020, serving initially as an assistant manager and then as manager for two years between 2022 and 2024. He left the MLS outfit after leading them to an MLS Cup final and semi-final, with third and sixth-placed finishes in the Eastern Conference.
After leaving New York at the end of the 2024 season, Cushing was taking time to evaluate his next steps before City’s approach, and City was the only women’s club he would have considered joining.
He remains focused on securing a role at the higher levels of the men’s game following his New York spell, leaving City to find a permanent successor to Taylor after the season’s end.
Cushing has the opportunity to win a fifth trophy as City boss in his first game this weekend with the League Cup final, adding to his previous two wins in the competition in 2014 and 2016. The Blues also face an FA Cup semi-final derby against Manchester United, pursuing a potential domestic cup double.
They will also play a two-legged Champions League quarter-final against Chelsea this month and a crucial WSL match against the same opponents at the Etihad Stadium, which could determine their top-three hopes.
City Women Managing Director Charlotte O’Neill attributed Taylor’s departure to the team’s WSL performance and the risk of missing Champions League qualification, stating, “Manchester City prides itself on competing at the top of the WSL and on its outstanding record of qualifying for European competition. Unfortunately, results this season have so far not reached this high standard. With six games of the WSL campaign remaining, we believe that a change of management will breathe fresh life into our bid to ensure qualification for the 2025/26 UEFA Women’s Champions League.”
