Bradford City manager latest: Steve Thompson & Neil Redfearn approach, Dean Holden interest, Gillingham competition | OneFootball

Bradford City are still on the hunt for a new manager after parting ways with Mark Hughes earlier this week.

The Welshman, who was appointed into the Valley Parade hotseat back in November 2022 paid the price for an underwhelming start to the new League Two season, with the Bantams sitting in 18th place after 11 league matches.

Despite a successful run to the play-off semi-final last campaign for the first time since 2017, Bradford have won just three games so far this term and believe a change is right at this time away from the experienced former Premier League boss.

Appointing his successor will be club CEO Ryan Sparks and several targets have already been identified.

Here at Football League World, we round-up the latest news on the Bradford managerial front.

According to a report from the Daily Star, Bradford wish to speak to both Neil Redfearn and Steve Thompson about the vacant manager position.

The pair are currently working together at Oldham Athletic in the National League, with the latter being the caretaker boss following David Unsworth's departure from the Latics.

Thompson is usually Oldham’s head of recruitment but has stepped into the interim role with great success by registering three wins and two draws from five domestic outings. Thompson brought in Redfearn to work alongside him during this brief stint due to their positive working relationship over a long period of time.

Thompson's playing career has seen him represent the likes of Bolton Wanderers, Leicester City and Rotherham, before jumping into a coaching role and becoming assistant manager at Blackpool between 2006 and 2014.

He linked up with Simon Grayson at Preston North End in 2015, spending seven years at Deepdale before departing and eventually becoming Oldham's head of recruitment.

Redfearn had a lengthy playing career, with his most notable stint coming with Barnsley between 1991 and 1998, playing top flight football with the Tykes.

The 58-year-old managed both Scarborough and Northwich Victoria in the mid-2000's and has been caretaker manager of a number of clubs, including Leeds United on multiple occasions, before being handed the role on a full-time basis in 2014, but he lasted just a year in the job.

Dean Holden “interested” in Bradford City vacancy

Former Charlton Athletic manager Dean Holden is reportedly interested in becoming manager of Bradford City according to the Telegraph & Argus.

Holden was appointed by Charlton last Christmas with the task of keeping them in League One.

He lifted the Addicks from 19th to a comfortable 10th-placed finish but was sacked by the clubs’ new owners at the end of August following a run of four successive defeats.

The 44-year-old is keen to get straight back into management and is unlikely to be put off by dropping down a division as he looks to restore his reputation.

Holden has also had spells in the second-tier with Bristol City and Stoke City, boosting the credentials on his CV.

Bradford City face managerial competition from Gillingham

Bradford are set to face strong competition from fellow League Two rivals Gillingham, who also sacked their manager this week in Neil Harris.

The Gills parted company with the 46-year-old despite topping the table from their opening four league games, but a run of three matches without a win has seen the club slip to eighth, with the Kent-based outfit insisting they have decided to “go in a different direction”.

According to the Yorkshire Post, Gillingham have one of the fourth-tier’s bigger budgets and maintain ambitions to return to League One for the first time since May 2022.

With Gillingham and Bradford on a similar range financially, both clubs could be set to battle it out in the race to employ their number one targets.