From Accrington Stanley to England No 2 – who is ‘all round good egg’ Barry?
Anthony Barry (left) started coaching when he took charge of Accrington Stanley Under-16s at the age of 29
Neil Johnston
BBC Sport journalist
“We tried to appoint Anthony as our manager,” says Fleetwood Town’s chief executive Steve Curwood about Anthony Barry, England’s new assistant boss.
“He was keen to engage with us. This was when Frank Lampard left Chelsea [January 2021] and I think Anthony thought he was going to be out of the door.”
In fact, Barry was kept on at Stamford Bridge and went on to forge such a strong relationship with Thomas Tuchel, Lampard’s replacement, that the German took him to Bayern Munich before the new England boss named him as his assistant on Wednesday.
Liverpool-born Barry, 38, spent 13 years as a midfielder in England’s lower tiers, playing for Yeovil Town, Fleetwood Town, Accrington Stanley and Wrexham among others.
After serious injury at the age of 24, he decided to concentrate on his coaching badges and five years later took charge of Accrington Stanley Under-16s in 2015.
“I remember my first session so clearly,” Barry told the Euros Essential Football Podcast, external in June.
“It was a Tuesday night, there were around 10 players, I had a third of a pitch, and not enough balls and not enough bibs!
“But I simply fell in love with coaching, and on that night I knew it was absolutely everything I wanted to do.”
Nine years on from Accrington Stanley Under-16s, Barry’s thoughts are turning towards the 2026 World Cup as he gets ready to begin his new role on 1 January 2025 alongside Tuchel.
‘A student of the game’
Image source, Getty Images
Anthony Barry (right) in action for Accrington Stanley against Hull City in the League Cup in 2015
Barry, from the Childwall area of Liverpool, started out as a trainee at Everton before moving to Coventry City where he was a regular in the reserves.
His first taste of Football League action came at Yeovil and in 2007, two days before his 21st birthday, he played at Wembley in the League One play-off final against Blackpool, who won 2-0.
Aged 23, he upset Wrexham boss Dean Saunders when he passed a medical with the Welsh club before he changed his mind and joined Fleetwood, who were playing one league below.
“He knows he has let me down,” said former Liverpool and Wales striker Saunders at the time. “I’m not so sure it’s a good career move for him football-wise.”
In the end, Barry helped Fleetwood Town win promotion to the Football League playing alongside Jamie Vardy, who went on to play for England 26 times.
“He was meticulous in everything he did, so when I see him now as a coach I am not surprised,” Micky Mellon, Barry’s boss at Fleetwood between 2010-2012, tells BBC Sport.
“I am not going to sit here and say I expected him to be England’s assistant manager.
“You can’t say that about anybody. But looking back and knowing the qualities that Anthony has – the professionalism, he’s a real student of football – I’m delighted he has got an opportunity to go and work for the national team.
“We got promoted to the Football League. Anthony was a big part of that group and was always a good lad to have around the place.”
Image source, Getty Images
Barry (right) in action for Yeovil against Blackpool in the League One play-off final at Wembley in 2007
‘I’m standing in front of superstars I used to watch on TV’
After turning down Wrexham earlier in his career, Barry finally played for them in 2016 but it was not long before he retired from playing aged 31 because of injury.
He joined League One Wigan Athletic as assistant to Paul Cook in 2017.
“From then on, the next seven or eight years have accelerated at such a rate that I certainly didn’t expect,” Barry told the Euros Essential Football Podcast.
As well as Chelsea, Barry’s coaching CV includes stints as assistant manager of the Republic of Ireland, Belgium and Portugal, working with the likes of Romelu Lukaku and Cristiano Ronaldo.
“I’m standing in front of world superstars who not too long ago I was watching on the television, but pretty quickly you have to adapt,” he said.
“You have to treat them exactly the same as every player you’ve ever worked with… treat them with love, with warmth, with a desire to improve them.”
Barry is a 2020 graduate from the FA’s Pro Licence and achieved top marks for written work and his attention to detail.
Barry’s dissertation focused on throw-ins, which saw him watch 60 hours of footage involving every one of the 16,380 throw-ins taken in the 2018-19 Premier League season.
“He’s a well-respected coach, otherwise he wouldn’t have lasted in the environment and been championed by those he has been around for the last few years,” added Curwood.
“Anthony is an all-round good egg and I’m delighted for him.”
Road trip to Munich
Image source, PA Media
Barry (third left) was assistant to Thomas Tuchel (left) at Chelsea when they won the Champions League in 2021
Barry has established a strong relationship with Tuchel on and off the training pitch.
Following Bayern’s 4-2 defeat at Hoffenheim on the final day of last season, Tuchel opted not to fly back with the rest of the team.
Instead he and coach Nicolas Mayer drove back with Barry, who was unable to fly due to an operation on his knee.
According to Bild newspaper,, external Tuchel wanted to show solidarity towards Barry.
“It wasn’t just solidarity, we wanted to give something back to Anthony,” said Tuchel.
“It was our last away game – and he agreed to come with us despite the operation.
“That’s why Nico and I took the road trip with him back to Munich.”
