STEVE COOPER has made his return to football some four months after being sacked by Leicester.
Cooper, 45, was given the boot in November after the Foxes won just TWO of the first twelve matches of the Premier League season.
PASteve Cooper has been out of work since being sacked by Leicester at the end of November[/caption]
APLautaro Martinez celebrates scoring Inter’s opener against Feyenoord[/caption]
The former Nottingham Forest and Swansea boss has now made a return to football in a new role with Uefa.
According to journalist Henry Winter, Cooper covered his first official game as a Technical Observer last night, watching over Feyenoord vs Inter in the Champions League.
Technical Observers analyse each match from a coaching perspective, and are tasked with selecting the Player of the Match for each fixture.
Lautaro Martinez became Inter’s all-time top scorer in the European Cup/Champions League with his 18th goal for the Italian giants as they triumphed over their Dutch opponents.
Marcus Thuram poked home a looping ball shortly after half-time to give his side a commanding lead going into the second leg.
Cooper selected the Argentine as Player of the Match as he proved a nightmare for Feyenoord goalkeeper Timon Wellenreuther.
Cooper joins a talented pool of Technical Observers for the 2024/45 Champions League campaign, including a host of ex-Premier League bosses.
Gareth Southgate, Rafa Benitez, David Moyes and Avram Grant have all acted as Technical Observers throughout the current campaign.
AlamyGareth Southgate carried out the same role for Uefa earlier this season[/caption]
Prior to returning to management with Besiktas just last month, former Man Utd boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer carried out a similar role.
Speaking to Uefa earlier in the season, Solskjaer detailed a day in the life of a Technical Observer.
He said: “My role entails travelling to matches and analysing the technical quality and tactical approach closely, as well as picking a Player of the Match.
“It’s a really great way of watching the top teams closely and keeping up with trends.
“I also get to meet new and old football acquaintances in a more relaxed setting.”
Moyes, meanwhile, added that he had learnt a lot from carrying out the role.
The new Everton boss revealed he had “brought information and ideas back from both the EURO and the Nations League“, learning new tricks which “can be exploited all the way down to junior teams”.
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