Nigel Gibbs
Nigel Gibbs
Nigel James Gibbs (born 20 November 1965) is an English professional football manager and former player. He has been an assistant coach at Swansea City and has previously worked as a coach with the Under-19 squad of Tottenham Hotspur. A Watford supporter, as well as a product of their youth system, Gibbs spent his entire professional career as a right back for the club. He was assistant manager of Leeds United after being appointed on 12 April 2013 alongside Brian McDermott, whom he assisted at Reading. He departed from Leeds United in August 2014.Gibbs made his Watford debut in 1983, in front of 38,000 spectators in a UEFA Cup match against Sparta Prague. In his early career Gibbs also played nine times for the England youth team, and five times for England under-21s. Under the management of Graham Taylor, Gibbs eventually established himself as a first-team player at Watford, making 100 Football League appearances before the club's relegation from the First Division in 1988. Gibbs remained a key player for the team in the Second Division, and was voted Watford F.C. Player of the Season in 1992. Manager Glenn Roeder appointed Gibbs as club captain for the 1992–93 season, but a series of serious injuries restricted him to 33 appearances over the following four seasons. When his contract expired in 1996, Gibbs considered retirement, but he went on to earn a new contract and make the most appearances of any Watford player in 1996–97. Gibbs featured regularly in Watford's rise from the Second Division to the Premier League between 1997 and 1999, and went on to play a further 17 games at the top level of English football. Watford were relegated in 2000, and Gibbs made eight further appearances before retiring in 2002. Gibbs remained at Watford as a coach, primarily working with the youth and reserve teams. He took charge of the first team for a week following Ray Lewington's sacking as manager in 2005, but in turn was dismissed by incoming manager Aidy Boothroyd just before the start of the following season. After taking a year off to acquire the UEFA Pro Licence, Gibbs joined Reading as youth team manager in 2006, and became assistant manager in 2009–10. He continued in this role, and in 2011–12 Reading won the Football League Championship title, earning promotion to the Premier League.