Ashvir Singh Johal: Morecambe appoint first Sikh manager at professional British club | OneFootball

The 30-year-old also becomes the youngest manager in the top five tiers of English football

Johal, 30, becomes the first Sikh to take charge of a professional British club and the youngest manager in the top five tiers of English football.

Johal replaces the popular Derek Adams, who was sacked on Monday.

Adams was sacked by the new owners Panjab Warriors following the completion of their takeover of the club a few days earlier.

The Panjab Warriors consortium takeover of Morecambe rescued the Shrimps from imminent expulsion from the National League, and potential extinction as a club.

Johal has previously worked under Kolo Toure at Wigan and as an assistant to Cesc Fabregas during his time with the youth team at Italian side Como.

Johal also recently became one of the youngest coaches in the history of English football to complete his Uefa Pro Licence qualification.

Before his move into senior football with Wigan in 2022, he spent 10 years in various roles in Leicester City's academy.

In an interview with the BBC in June, Johal said: "I have been fortunate to work with and learn from some incredible people, and I'm especially grateful to Kolo and Cesc.

"I know what world-class standards look like, how to lead with clarity, and how to develop a team with a real identity.

"We will create an environment that brings the best out of people, that people want to be part of, and that drives people to improve every day."

The work starts now for Johal as Morecambe currently have a squad of just five first-team players, and are due to face Altrincham at 12.30pm on Saturday.