Jobs4Football meets Conor Sellars

Jobs4Football spoke to former Bradford City manager, Conor Sellars, about his time at the Yorkshire club and his ambition to get back into coaching as soon as possible.

Sellars parted ways with Bradford in July 2021 after steering the club, alongside co-manager Mark Trueman, away from the relegation zone and even threatened to make the playoffs at one point.

When he took over the role in December 2020, Sellars was the youngest EFL manager to date and he can hold his head high knowing his first professional managerial job in football was a success. This can be emphasised by two Manager of the Month nominations, 5 straight wins for the first time since 2016, whilst also boasting the second-best ever points per game ratio in Bradford City’s managerial history.

When discussing his time in the role, Sellars said: “I’m immensely proud of my time at Bradford, the objective was to stay in the division and we managed to do that with around eight games to go. Myself and Mark had a really good understanding and this was important, because it’s unusual in football to have two managers working together in the way Mark and I did, and our mutual understanding and clear vision meant it worked really well.

“First thing we wanted to do was to make the team difficult to break down and so we focused a lot on out of possession work, defending space rather than man-marking, setting traps and marking systems. As well as the system there was also a lot of change to personnel, so we had success with signing replacements in the January transfer window, which meant we could bring on board people who were more suited to our style of play and player profiles which would lead to better cohesion in the squad.

“You could see the team started playing with much more confidence and played together as a unit in what was up until that point a really difficult season for the club as a whole. Obviously, I would have liked to manage the club into the new season, having the benefit of pre-season with the team and a planned recruitment drive in the summer with that I feel I could have helped the team to continue to progress, but I left with nothing but positive memories and feel in really good stead for my next role in coaching/management.”

Before taking over as the head coach, Sellars had previously worked for the club as a U18s Professional Development Phase Coach and a Head Foundation Phase Coach in a seven year spell. So despite still being in the early stages of his coaching career, the 30-year-old has already obtained a vast amount of knowledge and experience in management and development.

“When working with the academy players my job was focussed on improving them as much as possible in terms of tactical awareness, developing their skills and knowledge, behavioural management whilst also trying to create a mentality that would see them become resilient, hard working but also making sure they are enjoying their football and preparing for 1st team opportunities with a passionate, winning mentality.

“Whilst I was in charge we had five players come through the academy to the first team which I think is the most in a long time. I feel it’s important to trust in the academy players because for a lot of clubs, especially in the lower leagues, utilising your resources is key, it’s always good to see young players come through and make their mark". Bradford City saw over 50 appearances in the 1st team from players from the previous season's youth team/U18's.

“In my time at Bradford as a whole, I’ve learnt a lot in terms of player development and gained a solid foundation of working in a first team environment to take me forward in my career and make me a better coach”

Sellars is now looking forward to the future and getting back into coaching so he can continue to build on the good start he has made in managerial life and work his way up to the highest level possible.

“I think if you look at the evidence of Bradford you can say it was a really good job done, achieving more than what was asked and setting the standards higher. This gives me a lot of confidence going into my next role and I’m excited to build on my knowledge and experience.

“I think in order to be a successful coach you have to be adaptable. Scenarios in football change all the time and so you have to be ready to deal with whatever comes at you and I feel this is a skill I possess. As well as this I believe it is important to have clarity on how you want the team to play and what you want players to do, so having clear messages will only lead to a better understanding on and off the pitch.

“I know I still have a long way to go, I’m by no means the finished product, but I believe in myself as a coach and my methods and I know ultimately it will come down to me if I want to be successful in football going forward.”