Fulham have confirmed this afternoon that Steve Wigley has been appointed the club’s academy director after Sean Cullen’s departure for Brighton and Hove Albion.
Wigley, who has been a key part in the development of Fulham’s category one academy since moving to Motspur Park from Nottingham Forest in 2012. The former Southampton supremo excelled as Fulham’s head of academy coaching and then managed both the under-18 and under-23 sides before slotting into his previous position as the academy’s technical director two years ago. Wigley, awarded Eamonn Dolan Trophy at the Premier League’s academy awards ceremony earlier this year in recognition of his unrivalled achievements in youth development, highly-regarded throughout the game and has excellent relationship with both the club’s board and first team head coach Marco Silva.
Wigley’s appointment as academy director is one of a series of internal promotions that underscore the strength of the coaching set-up at Motspur Park. Andrew Watt, who has spent nearly two decades working at Fulham, has been named the new academy manager. Watt, a graduate of the University of Portsmouth, has progressed from a part-time role with the Fulham Foundation in 2006 through to spells as the club’s academy youth foundation phase manager, youth development phase manager, head of football operations and head of coaching.
Ali Melloul has been promoted to first team coach after four years in charge of Fulham’s under-18s side having worked with Marco Silva’s backroom staff since the pre-season tour to Portugal. Melloul’s former assistant Andrew Joslin, formerly an outstanding academy age-group group, has taken charge of the under-18s and retained the services of assistant coach Tommy Wilkinson.
Dan Thomas has been named the new assistant under-21s head coach. Thomas joined the Whites in 2008 and was previously the club’s head of player development having been head coach of every age group in the Fulham academy. He combines his new role as assistant to under-21 head coach Hayden Mullins with his duties as Welsh under-21 assistant head coach to Matt Jones,
