Man City face losing Under-21 coach Wilkinson as senior clubs circle after Guardiola exodus

Manchester City are at risk of losing Under-21 coach Ben Wilkinson this summer, with multiple clubs at League One and Championship level registering interest in the 36-year-old as City navigate the most significant coaching upheaval in the club’s modern era.

Wilkinson has spent eight years at the Etihad, joining from Sheffield Wednesday’s academy in 2018. He worked his way through the age groups — serving as Under-21s assistant, then taking charge of the Under-16s in 2020 and the Under-18s a year later — before stepping up to the Under-21s in 2024 when Brian Barry-Murphy departed for senior management. In his first season at that level, Wilkinson won the league title; this year his side reached the semi-finals with a largely new group of players.

His record in player development has drawn particular attention. Six youngsters made their first-team debuts for City this season, and Nico O’Reilly — a player Wilkinson helped develop — was named Premier League Young Player of the Year. That profile has attracted head-coach interest from League One clubs and assistant-manager approaches from the Championship, as well as interest from abroad.

Wilkinson is the son of former Leeds United manager Howard Wilkinson, and his trajectory mirrors that of his predecessors in the City Under-21 role. Barry-Murphy left in 2024 to become Leicester’s assistant before taking the Cardiff City job, where he won promotion from League One at the first attempt. Before Barry-Murphy, the role was held by Enzo Maresca, who is now expected to be confirmed as Pep Guardiola’s permanent successor at the Etihad following his work at Leicester and Chelsea.

City have already said farewell to Guardiola and almost his entire backroom staff, with set-piece coach James French the only member of that group confirmed to be staying. Maresca is expected to bring his own coaching team with him, meaning Wilkinson’s potential exit would leave another significant gap in City’s academy pipeline at a moment when continuity in youth development is already under strain.

Whether City can persuade Wilkinson to remain — or find a suitable internal successor if he leaves — will be one of the quieter but consequential decisions of an unusually turbulent summer at the Etihad.