Hughes leaves Man Utd to manage Newport County

Newport County have named Manchester United youth coach David Hughes as their new manager.

Hughes has signed a two-year deal at the League Two club, leaving his role as under-21s coach and assistant manager at Old Trafford.

The 47-year-old Welshman replaces Nelson Jardim at Rodney Parade, who left the Exiles two weeks before the end of the season.

"Leaving a great club like Manchester United is never easy, but I'm excited about what lies ahead here," Hughes said.

"You build relationships with people and that makes decisions like this challenging.

"But after speaking to the chairman (Huw Jenkins) on a few occasions, it became a straightforward decision in terms of the challenge ahead and the shared vision for the club."

Hughes, a former Aston Villa, Shrewsbury Town and Cardiff City defender, had been the leading contender for the job following Jardim's exit by mutual consent.

Having held lead academy roles at Cardiff and Southampton before joining United in August 2022, Hughes has developed an impressive reputation at youth level.

He will now be charged by Jenkins to oversee an upturn in fortunes at Rodney Parade for a youthful squad that finished 22nd in 2024-25.

The Wrexham-born former Wales Under-21s international – who also spent four years as manager of Wales Under-17s – will be assisted by Wayne Hatswell, who was previously number two at Newport under Mike Flynn.

Hatswell leaves a role in the Football Association of Wales (FAW) age-grade set-up to return to Newport, while Lee Kendall has been named the new head of goalkeeping.