Arsenal legend Steve Bould has secured a return to the dugout after being appointed head coach of Belgian side Lommel SK.

Bought by City Football Group in 2020, Lommel SK play their football in Belgium’s second tier and operates as a feeder club to Manchester City.

In addition to the Premier League champions, City Football Group (78% owned by Abu Dhabi United Group) also operates or has a vested interest in Melbourne City FC, Montevideo City Torque, New York City FC, Mumbai City FC, Girona FC, Sichuan Jiuniu, Yokohama F.Marinos and Troyes.

On taking up his new job, Bould said: “I am delighted to join Lommel SK within City Football Group and to work with such a talented group of players. It is a great time to join the club and to be part of an exciting journey in the years to come.”

After 10 years as a player at Arsenal, Bould returned to the club in 2001 to work with the club’s youngsters and led them to Premier Academy titles in 2008/09 and 2009/10 and an FA Youth Cup in 2008/09.

In 2012, he replaced Pat Rice as Arsene Wenger’s assistant and held the job for seven seasons before taking over Freddie Ljungberg’s duties with the under-23s.

Bould eventually left the club last summer as Per Mertesacker and Mikel Arteta continued a reshaping of the Arsenal Academy.

While taking up a gig on the Death Star isn’t something we’d advise anyone to do, it’s good to see Steve returning to the game he’s served for so long.

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