Duncan Ferguson set to take charge at Glentoran
Duncan Ferguson is set to become the new manager of Glentoran, with confirmation expected on Monday.
The Belfast club have been without a permanent boss since parting company with Declan Devine on 14 September, according to BBC. Joint caretaker Tim McCann has held the fort in October, overseeing a late win against Limavady that kept spirits up.
Glentoran first made Cliftonville manager Jim Magilton their priority target after Devine's departure. Magilton indicated he intended to stay at Cliftonville's Solitude ground, and the search moved on. Tiernan Lynch, who won the Irish Premiership twice with Larne, had left Derry City in August in a busy period for managers in Ireland.
Ferguson needs little introduction to British football fans. The 54-year-old Scot was capped seven times by Scotland and played for Everton, Rangers and Newcastle United. He was box office. His eight Premier League red cards remain a total no player has exceeded.
His coaching path has been long. Ferguson served as an assistant to Carlo Ancelotti, Rafa Benitez and Ronald Koeman at Everton, and worked under seven different permanent Everton managers in total. He also had two separate spells as Everton interim manager before leaving after Frank Lampard's departure in 2022. He then managed Forest Green Rovers and Inverness Caledonian Thistle, and won the FA Cup during his first spell as an Everton player.
He arrives at a club with history and hunger. Glentoran play in the Northern Irish Premiership, the country's top flight, at The Oval in east Belfast. They have won 23 Gibson Cups, the trophy given to the league champions, but the most recent came in 2009 under Alan McDonald. That is a long wait. Since then there has been Irish Cup success under Mick McDermott in 2020 and a County Antrim Shield win under Devine in January 2025.
The early reaction has been warm. McCann hailed Ferguson's appointment as the start of a bright new era, as reported by the Irish News. Backer Ali Shams Pour is supporting a title push under the new boss, according to the Belfast Telegraph. talkSPORT described the expected move as the league's biggest managerial appointment.
For fans, this means noise, colour and curiosity. Ferguson brings Premier League fame to a title race that rarely gets that kind of spotlight, and his first night at The Oval should be quite an occasion.
