Lincoln City have announced their Michael Skubala as their new head coach, nearly a month after the dismissal of Mark Kennedy. The 41-year-old joins the Imps, with the club currently sat in 9th place in the SkyBet League One.
The former Leeds United coach has signed a deal until the end of the 2026/27 season. But what are his credentials?
Early Career:
Born in Nottingham, Skubala has remained in England throughout his time in management and started in the English non-league at Barwell. There he was assistant manager for five years within a spell ranging from 2005-2010.
Whilst he was at Barwell, he was a PE teacher at Lutterworth College in the Midlands. He also spent time coaching within the academies of Coventry City and Nottingham Forest.
Futsal:
In 2008, he switched sides over to futsal, a five-a-side version of football, typically played indoors. He become assistant manager of Loughborough’s University side, over a six-year period. This included becoming Director of Football at Loughborough. He had success in being runners-up at the World University Games in 2011, still as assistant manager.
A clear love for futsal is clearly deep within Skubala. He became head coach for the England National team, throughout the 2020 Futsal World Cup, and has worked with the likes of Wolves’ Max Kilman as a result.
The Futsal team is not the only role within the national set-up that Skubala has had. As, he also had a stint within the England U18’s squad between January 2021 and July 2022.
Leeds United:
The Englishman was brought into the Leeds United Under 21’s role in 2022, taking them to second place in the Premier League 2 Division Two table.
All of this eventually led to his appointment as assistant manager of Sam Allardyce and Javi Garcia at Leeds United. He was also partnered with Jesse Marsch.
He would take charge of three games in the Premier League, including a 2-2 draw against Manchester United at Old Trafford, as caretaker manager after Marsch was sacked by the club in February 2023.
What can he bring to Lincoln City?
It is his first senior management job in the Football League, and will need to adjust quickly to life within management of an EFL side to keep the Imps in the top ten. He becomes the second youngest manager within League One, only behind Cambridge United’s Mark Boner (37).
It would be wrong to suggest he would immediately change the Lincoln City blueprint, but over time, based off of the futsal sides that he has coached, a more possession and technical side could be seen in comparison to the reign of Mark Kennedy.
It will also be interesting to see how the new coach deals with the attacker injury crisis that the club sees itself in. Will he need to bring in some new faces into the club in January?
Michael Skubala wasn’t a name many had on their lists for the vacant Lincoln City head coach role, but after a lengthy recruitment process he has got the job. Skubala will begin his reign away to Stevenage on Saturday, November 18th.
Photo credit: Andrew Vaughan/Lincoln City