Will Still: The Englishman without badges who became a French football sensation

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The football coach, Will Still, might come back to his home soon because he left Stade de Reims by mutual decision this week. Currently, he is being connected with potential manager positions in the English league system.

The Englishman who was born in Belgium has caught great attention from the media at the start of his career because he was appointed as the youngest manager in the top five leagues of Europe when he was only 30 years old. This happened in October 2022, while he was working for Ligue 1 team Reims.

Because he didn't hold a Uefa Pro Licence, Reims had to pay a penalty of €25,000 (£22,000) per match he managed. However, his achievements were so impressive that the club was content to pay the fine.

The 31-year-old has left the French club located in the north. According to a statement from the club, it was agreed that both parties would not continue their sporting journey together for the next season, causing Will Still and Nicolas Still to step down from their roles starting today.

There is currently a lot of interest in a certain man and he's being strongly connected to the open position at the Championship team Sunderland. Earlier in December, Sunderland had a strong interest in hiring this man to replace Tony Mowbray. However, they ultimately decided to bring on Michael Beale, who was a free agent manager and would not require any payment.

Beale was only in charge of the Stadium of Light for a short two months before he left. Since then, Mike Dodds has been the interim boss since February. They are still looking for a permanent boss to take over. Still's current status as a free agent could potentially give him an advantage in the hiring process.

The trainer has been supporting West Ham since his childhood, and it seems that David Moyes is no longer going to be the coach at the London Stadium. As a result, the trainer has been rumored to take on the role, although it would be a significant challenge to manage a Premier League team competing for European football. This would be quite a risky move for the Hammers to take.

Previously, Still mentioned that he wishes to become a manager in England. He shared his interest in leading a team in the Championship during an interview with The Athletic in February. He also expressed his desire to go back to the UK, stating that it feels like home and that he has been working abroad for a long time. He wants to work in an environment that he is familiar with and wants to come back home.

Still was born to English parents in Braine-l'Alleud, Belgium on October 14, 1992. He spent most of his childhood close to Brussels and had a strong passion for Premier League football. He even played at the amateur and semi-professional level.

He got interested in coaching thanks to playing Football Manager on his computer. When he was just 17 years old, he began his coaching studies at Myerscough College in Preston. Four years later, he started working as a video analyst at Sint-Truiden and then worked as a coach at different Belgian teams. He was even briefly in charge of Lierse when he was only 24 years old, and then, four years after that, he became the manager of Beerschot for a short while.

He left Beerschot and became an assistant coach to Oscar Garcia at Reims. When Garcia got fired on 13 October 2022, Still took on the role of temporary manager. He did well, leading the team to five games without defeat. As a result, he was appointed for the rest of the season and became the youngest manager to do so among Europe's top leagues. He led his team to a 19-game unbeaten run, including a record-breaking 17-game unbeaten streak in Ligue 1. Eventually, the team finished at an impressive 11th place under his leadership.

Recently, Still has been trying hard to separate himself from the association with Football Manager. He has been emphasizing that he has ample experience coaching in the real world. Although he has become a symbol for a new generation of coaches who are knowledgeable in many languages and don't have a previous career as a professional athlete, he still wants people to acknowledge his actual coaching experience.

Last year, Still revealed to Sky Sports that people have a misconception about him due to his involvement in playing Football Manager. He explained that many people think of him as a nerdy computer guy who got lucky and became a great coach at Stade de Reims. However, he has actually been playing the game for ten years and the skills and knowledge he has gained from it have been beneficial to his career.

Many individuals claim, "He has no coaching badges or qualifications; he simply plays video games!" However, I attended university to earn a degree in football coaching, and I have acquired the highest level diploma possible in this field. Additionally, I am currently working towards obtaining a Pro Licence. While the narrative of a video game player becoming a coach may be intriguing, those who criticize me likely know the truth deep down.

Still had a one-of-a-kind experience that resulted in him becoming a sensation on football Twitter. This even caused Austrian team Red Bull Salzburg to make a bitter post, in which they indirectly insulted him while promoting their own young manager, Matthias Jaissle. They mentioned that Jaissle doesn't have to pay fines because he's licensed with UEFA Pro.

There was a small decrease in performance during Still's second season coaching at Reims, and currently the team is placed in 11th position in Ligue 1 with just a couple of games left. Despite this, Still's reputation as a coach has not declined and it seems likely that he will manage a team in England soon.