AFC Bournemouth are delighted to announce the appointment of Scott Parker as the club’s new head coach.
The 40-year-old former Fulham boss has put pen to paper on a three-year contract at Vitality Stadium and will be joined by five new members of staff.
Matt Wells will be assistant head coach, with Rob Burch the club’s first team goalkeeping coach. Alastair Harris joins as head of performance, while Charlie Moore is lead physical performance coach and Jonathan Hill first team head analyst.
A central midfielder by trade, Parker began his career at Charlton Athletic before featuring for Chelsea, Newcastle United, West Ham United, Tottenham Hotspur and Fulham, retiring in the summer of 2017 with 572 club appearances under his belt.
In addition, he won 18 senior England caps, featuring at Euro 2012 and captaining his nation.
Having hung up his boots, Parker returned to Spurs to take his first steps in coaching with their under-18s squad.
Twelve months later he was appointed first team coach at another of his former clubs, Fulham, and having stepped up to a caretaker manager role, was permanently appointed as the Cottagers’ manager in May 2019.
Parker’s first full season in charge at Craven Cottage saw him secure promotion to the Premier League via the play-offs and he went on to memorably inspire Fulham to a victory over champions Liverpool in March.
“I believe this is the perfect fit for both parties,” Parker told afcbTV.
“I’m familiar with Bournemouth because of my relationship with Harry Arter. It’s a football club I know well from watching him over the years.
“The ethos, the reputation, the journey and the challenge here is something that’s very exciting for me and my staff.
“We want to build a team the fans can be proud of and one they feel represents them. We can’t wait to get started.”
AFC Bournemouth chief executive Neill Blake said: “It has been a long process but I am delighted to finally get our man.
“Scott has always been our number one choice for this role and someone whose coaching career we have taken a keen interest in since his first steps in Tottenham Hotspur’s academy.
“Over a period of time he has proven himself as one of the best young head coaches in the country; someone who has a clear philosophy on how he wants to play and knows what it takes to win promotion from the Championship.
“Scott is fully invested in the long-term project in front of us here, and this is the start of an exciting new period for this club.”
