Norwich City: 39-year-old Championship manager on Canaries radar | OneFootball

Bristol City boss Liam Manning - a former Canaries academy player - appears to be on the club's radar

Bristol City head coach Liam Manning is the latest contender for the Norwich City vacancy, according to reports.

The Canaries parted ways with previous boss Johannes Hoff Thorup - who is now a contender for the QPR job - in April, with the 36-year-old Dane lasting less than a year in charge at Carrow Road.

Finishing in mid-table in the 2024-25 Championship season despite having two of the top scorers in Borja Sainz and Josh Sargent, Norwich are determined to make it back to the Premier League as soon as possible, with a number of names being considered by sporting director Ben Knapper.

Bristol City manager Liam Manning under consideration for Norwich City job

It is not a decision that is being rushed by the powers-that-be at Norwich, although we do know that first-team coach Jack Wilshere will not be getting the job after a brief interim spell.

Pep Lijnders, Gary O'Neil and Steve Cooper are all names that have either been linked or sounded out by the club, but a new name in the form of Liam Manning has emerged, with talkSPORT's Alex Crook claiming that he's now a candidate.

Manning, who guided Bristol City to the Championship play-offs this past season, albeit they were trounced 6-0 by Sheffield United at the semi-final stage, has been at Ashton Gate since November 2023 following a short stint with Oxford United, and started his managerial career within the City Football Group system with Belgian outfit Lommel.

Perhaps crucially, Manning was born in Norwich, and even played for the Canaries in their academy system, although he did join Ipswich in 2002 as a 16-year-old.

The 39-year-old is under contract at Bristol City for another two seasons, and it remains to be seen as to whether a potential return to his home city could be a head-turning scenario.

Liam Manning potentially returning to Norwich City would be an emotional reunion

Whilst Norwich finished seven places below Bristol City in the Championship table, they could have a lot of money to spend this summer, if both Sainz and Sargent are sold as they are expected to be.

City have already made Jacob Wright's loan from Man City a permanent deal, so the spending power has already been showed off, and the ability to rebuild a stagnant Norwich side could really appeal to Manning, who hasn't exactly been short of a few bob to spend at Bristol City himself.

But the most important factor is family - given the tragic circumstances of Manning's personal life earlier in the year, a move back to the city of his birth could be pretty poignant, and it could also be an opportunity that he cannot afford to pass up, should he be a top contender for the job.