Former English international Scott Parker was appointed head of Bruges on Saturday, three days after the surprise dismissal of Carl Hoefkens which nevertheless allowed the Belgian team to qualify for the knockout stages of the Champions League.
«Scott Parker takes over from Carl Hoefkens as Club Brugge manager“said the reigning Belgian champion in a brief statement.
Selected 18 times in the England team and passed in particular by Chelsea and Newcastle, Parker, 42, began his coaching career as coach of the Under-18 team of Tottenham, before joining the management of Fulham in July 2018, then to succeed Claudio Ranieri in February 2019, of whom he was deputy.
He could not prevent the London club from being relegated to the 2nd division.
Under his watch, Fulham climbed back up to the Premier League at the end of the 2019-20 season, but the Cottagers rode the lift again and were relegated again in 2020-21.
After leaving Fulham, he led Bournemouth into the top flight, before leaving the club in August 2022 after just a few weeks in the Premier League.
Brugge caused a sensation this fall in the Champions League by finishing 2nd in their group ahead of Bayer Leverkusen and Atletico Madrid.
He will face Benfica in the round of 16 of the C1 in February, but he is currently in 4th place in the Belgian Championship, 12 points behind the leader, Genk, and has just been eliminated from the Belgian Cup, which has prompted the executives to part ways with Hoefkens.
