The fans’ favourite spent four years at Maine Road between 1994 and 1998. Although these were tough times, it may have been when the German developed a taste for the managerial game.
In Uwe’s second full season at the club - 1995/96 - he was surrounded by fellow aspiring managers and others who were planning for their future in the game. Not least because the club had three permanent managers throughout the season in Alan Ball, Steve Coppell and Frank Clark.
Here we take a look at a few of the fellow members of that City vintage to see where they are now…
Ian Brightwell
Making 34 of his 321 Blues league appearances during the 1995/96 campaign, the defender was in his 10th season at City.
Brightwell left in 1998 and had a spell as caretaker player-manager of Macclesfield Town, taking over from ex-City boss Brian Horton. He was finally appointed manager of the Moss Rose club in the summer of 2007, taking City teammate Asa Hartford as his assistant but he didn’t see out the 2007/2008 season.
Kit Symons
The ex-City centre back is the most recent of the 1995/96 squad to join the list of permanent managers, having been appointed Fulham manager in September 2014. The Welsh international kept the Cottagers up and has promised for better things next year.
During his three years at City, Symons racked up 124 appearances, with 41 of them coming in the relegation season. He moved on in 1998 but didn’t retire until 2005, taking caretaker roles at Crystal Palace and Colchester United before he joined the coaching staff at Fulham.
Keith Curle
City’s captain in 1995/96 was already a candidate for a future managerial career, even while still in his early 30s during this season. His first taste of management came in 2002 when Mansfield Town appointed him as player-manager.
It has been a stop-start managerial career for the former defender with short spells at Chester City, Torquay United and Notts County coming before his appointment at League Two club Carlisle United in September 2014.
Steve Lomas
Another of the 1995/96 squad to seek out a career in managing English clubs, the ex-midfielder has been out of a job since Millwall sacked him on Boxing Day of 2013. Lomas had a much better spell at Scottish side St. Johnstone, leading the club to Europa League qualification in both of his two seasons there.
Garry Flitcroft
The 1995/96 campaign was Garry Flitcroft’s last of his five years at City, as Blackburn Rovers gave him a chance to stay in the Premier League following the Blues’ relegation.
The ex-midfielder is another to have moved into coaching. He is currently manager of Conference North club Chorley, who narrowly missed out on promotion after play-off final defeat to Guiseley only two weeks ago.
Niall Quinn
Uwe’s regular strike partner during the 1995/96 season moved to Sunderland at the end of that season, ending with a record of 66 goals in 203 league games for City.
Quinn did attempt a brief career in coaching after becoming both manager and chairman for Sunderland at the start of the 2006/07 season. Quinn decided to step aside quickly after a disastrous start for the Black Cats but remained as club chairman until 2011.
He can now regularly be seen as a pundit on Sky Sports.
You can see Uwe talking about his time at City and his managerial career in City Square this Sunday.
