Kieran McKenna

Kieran McKenna (born 14 May 1986) is a professional football manager and former player who is the manager of side Ipswich Town. Born in London, he was raised in Northern Ireland where he played youth football. McKenna joined Tottenham Hotspur in 2002, and represented Northern Ireland U21 seven times, but a hip injury curtailed his playing career. After studying sports science at university, he worked at Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United F.C. with the youth sides, before being appointed as manager of Ipswich Town in 2021.

Early life
McKenna was born in London, and was raised in the Northern Irish county of Fermanagh.

Playing career
McKenna began his footballing career as a youth team player at Northern Irish sides Enniskillen Town United and Ballinamallard United. He joined Tottenham Hotspur as a youth player in 2002, after signing a scholarship contract with Spurs.

McKenna represented Northern Ireland at both under-19 and under-21 level. He was made captain of Northern Ireland’s under-19s side at the 2005 UEFA European Under-19 Championship by coach Mal Donaghy. In 2009, at the age of 22, McKenna retired from playing due to an ongoing hip injury which prevented him from making a senior first-team appearance for Tottenham.

Early roles and development
After retiring from playing, McKenna started his career in coaching while studying a sports science degree at Loughborough University. During his time studying, McKenna spent time as a youth coach at Tottenham Hotspur, Leicester City, Nottingham Forest, and Canadian side Vancouver Whitecaps.

Tottenham Hotspur
Upon graduating from Loughborough University, McKenna was hired as the Head of Academy Performance Analysis at Tottenham Hotspur. He was offered the role of Academy Coach at Liverpool, but remained at Spurs, coaching various age groups at the Tottenham Academy set-up, before being placed in charge of Tottenham Hotspur's under-18s side. During his tenure at Tottenham, McKenna guided the under-18s to the semi-final of the FA Youth Cup in 2015.

Manchester United
In August 2016, McKenna left his role at Tottenham to join the academy set-up at Manchester United, becoming the club's under-18s manager. In his second season in charge of the under-18s, McKenna guided Manchester United to the Premier League Northern Division title.

Along with former United player Michael Carrick, McKenna was promoted to the first-team coaching staff and replaced Rui Faria as José Mourinho's assistant manager, ahead of the 2018–19 Premier League season.

Following a poor start to the 2018–19 season, Mourinho left United on 18 December 2018, and was replaced the next day by former United striker Ole Gunnar Solskjær, who was appointed as caretaker manager, and retained both McKenna and Carrick in their coaching positions. McKenna was retained in his role by interim manager Ralf Rangnick following Solskjær’s departure as United manager in November 2021.

2021–22 season
On 16 December 2021, McKenna was appointed as manager of League One side Ipswich Town, signing a three-and-a-half-year contract. He officially took charge on 20 December, alongside his assistant Martyn Pert. McKenna's first game in charge of Ipswich saw his side win 1–0 against Wycombe Wanderers at Portman Road. McKenna's first away game in charge was a 4–0 win against Gillingham.

McKenna's arrival saw a quick upturn in Ipswich's form, winning seven of his first ten games in charge, keeping seven clean sheets in the process. Under McKenna, Ipswich went 11 matches unbeaten through February and March, including setting a new club record for not conceding a goal, surpassing the previous record of 547 minutes. Despite the improvement in form, Ipswich failed to reach the League One play-offs, eventually finishing in 11th place in League One. Ipswich ended the 2021–22 season with a 4–0 home win against Charlton Athletic on 30 April.

2022–23 season


During the 2022–23 season, McKenna was awarded the EFL League One Manager of the Month award for March 2023 as his side maintained their automatic promotion push. On 29 April 2023, Ipswich secured promotion to the EFL Championship after beating Exeter City 6–0 at home. He was later awarded the Manager of the Month award for April.

Ipswich finished the season in second place in League One to gain automatic promotion to the EFL Championship, following a 19-game unbeaten run.

At the end of the 2022–23 season, McKenna signed a new four-year contract, extending his stay at Portman Road until 2027.

2023–24 season


Ipswich started the 2023–24 season well and a run of four wins and a draw saw McKenna pick up the EFL Championship Manager of the Month award for September. He won the award for a second time in March 2024 as Ipswich won four of their five matches in March as Ipswich maintained their automatic promotion push.

McKenna was named as the EFL Championship Manager of the Season for the 2023–24 season as Ipswich finished second in the EFL Championship to win promotion to the Premier League. McKenna's Ipswich side accumulated 194 points and scored 193 goals over two seasons as they became the first club since Southampton in 2012 to secure back-to-back promotions from League One to the Premier League.

Despite being approached by fellow Premier League sides Chelsea and Brighton & Hove Albion, McKenna signed a new four-year contract with Ipswich until 2028.

Reception
Following McKenna's arrival as Manchester United's under-18s manager, Indy Boonen, who was a teenage player for United at the time, praised McKenna by stating, "He changed everything. The way we trained was how the opponent played on the Saturday. If you played against West Brom, you trained how they are and focused on their weaknesses."

Jim Magilton, the Irish Football Association's elite performance director, agreed with Boonen's appraisal of McKenna commenting, "He is a meticulous planner yet every session is spontaneous. Nothing is set in stone. He adjusts the session to how the players are and gets what he wants out of the session. Everything is linked and game related. Nothing is for show – it has to be about the game."

Personal life
McKenna is married and has two children.

Since his childhood, McKenna has been a supporter of Manchester United, with reports claiming that his love for the club influenced his decision to leave Tottenham Hotspur for the Red Devils in 2016.

Furthermore, McKenna also played Gaelic football for the minors of the Enniskillen Gaels club.

Manager
Manchester United U18
 * U18 Premier League Northern Division: 2017–18

Ipswich Town
 * EFL Championship second-place promotion: 2023–24
 * EFL League One second-place promotion: 2022–23

Individual
 * EFL League One Manager of the Month: March 2023, April 2023
 * EFL Championship Manager of the Month: September 2023, March 2024
 * EFL Championship Manager of the Season: 2023–24
 * LMA Manager of the Year: 2023–24
 * LMA Awards - EFL Championship Manager of the Year: 2023–24