Ricky Sbragia facts for kids
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Richard Sbragia | ||
| Date of birth | 26 May 1956 | ||
| Place of birth | Lennoxtown, Scotland | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||
| Position(s) | Defender | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Rangers | |||
| Glasgow Amateurs | |||
| 1972–1974 | Birmingham City | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1974–1978 | Birmingham City | 15 | (1) |
| 1975–1976 | → Morton (loan) | 4 | (0) |
| 1978–1980 | Walsall | 77 | (4) |
| 1980–1982 | Blackpool | 26 | (1) |
| 1982–1987 | York City | 149 | (7) |
| 1985 | → Darlington (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| Total | 277 | (13) | |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2002–2005 | Manchester United Reserves | ||
| 2008–2009 | Sunderland | ||
| 2011–2012 | Scotland U17 | ||
| 2012–2015 | Scotland U19 | ||
| 2015–2016 | Scotland U21 | ||
| 2016–2017 | Scotland U19 | ||
| 2017–2019 | Manchester United U23 | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Richard Sbragia, born on May 26, 1956, is a Scottish football coach and a former player. He played as a defender.
He spent most of his playing career in the lower football leagues in England. He played for teams like Birmingham City, Walsall, Blackpool, and York City. He also had a short loan spell in Scotland with Morton.
After retiring as a player, Sbragia became a well-known coach. He worked at big clubs such as Manchester United and Bolton. He also had a time as manager of Sunderland. Later, he coached different youth teams for the Scottish Football Association, including the Scotland Under-17, Under-19, and Under-21 teams.
Contents
Ricky Sbragia's Playing Days
Early Life and Youth Football
Ricky Sbragia was born in Lennoxtown, Scotland. His family has Italian roots. He grew up in Castlemilk, a housing area in Glasgow. As a young boy, he went to Grange Secondary School. He played in youth football teams with Jimmy Calderwood, who also became a professional footballer and later a manager.
Starting His Professional Career
Sbragia began his football journey as an apprentice with Birmingham City in June 1972. He signed his first professional contract with the club in May 1974. He made his first team debut during the 1974–75 season.
In the 1975–76 season, he went on loan to Morton in the Scottish Football League. He played four games for them. He found it hard to get a regular spot in Birmingham's first team. After playing 15 games and scoring one goal, he moved to Walsall in October 1978. Walsall paid £15,000 for him.
Success with Walsall and York City
With Walsall, Sbragia helped the team win promotion in the 1979–80 season. They finished second in the Fourth Division. In July 1980, he moved to Third Division team Blackpool for £35,000. He played 26 games and scored one goal during his two seasons at Blackpool.
In August 1982, Denis Smith signed him for York City. Sbragia played his first game for York on August 28, 1982, in a 1–1 draw against Torquay United. In his first season, he played in all 52 games and scored one goal.
During the 1983–84 season, Sbragia formed a strong partnership in defense with John MacPhail. That season, York City won the Fourth Division title with an amazing 101 points. In February 1985, he scored York's equalizing goal against Liverpool in the FA Cup. This led to an exciting replay match at Anfield. Sbragia had a back injury during this time and needed surgery. He later joined Darlington on loan in August 1985, playing six games for them.
Coaching and Managerial Career
Starting as a Coach
Ricky Sbragia stopped playing football in 1987. He then started his coaching career with York City as their youth-team coach. He earned his Football Association coaching badge in May 1990. He led the youth team to the quarter-finals of the FA Youth Cup in the 1992–93 season, which was a big achievement for the club.
In 1994, he became the youth-team coach at Sunderland. He was later promoted to coach the reserve team. On November 20, 2002, he moved to Manchester United to coach their reserve team. He was very successful there, helping young talents like Kieran Richardson and Darren Fletcher develop their skills.
On October 10, 2005, Sbragia became the first-team coach at Bolton Wanderers. When Sam Allardyce left Bolton in April 2007, Sammy Lee became the new manager. Sbragia kept his role as first-team coach alongside Jimmy Phillips and Gary Speed.
Managing Sunderland
Sbragia returned to Sunderland's coaching staff in November 2007. He was appointed as the temporary manager on December 4, 2008, after Roy Keane left the club. His first game in charge was against Manchester United, which Sunderland lost 1–0. However, his team then had a great 4–0 win over West Bromwich Albion and a 4–1 victory at Hull City.
On December 27, 2008, Sbragia was officially appointed as Sunderland's permanent manager with an 18-month contract. On May 24, 2009, he resigned as manager after successfully keeping Sunderland in the Premier League on the very last day of the season. He stayed at Sunderland as the chief scout until April 2011.
Coaching Scotland's Youth Teams
In August 2011, Sbragia was appointed as the head coach of the Scotland national under-17 team. He then moved up with the team to coach the Scotland national under-19 team for the 2012–13 season.
In November 2014, Sbragia took temporary charge of the Scotland national under-21 team. He took on the Under-21 job full-time on August 12, 2015. He left this position in September 2016 after a 4–0 loss to Ukraine's Under-21 team.
Return to Manchester United
On July 7, 2017, Sbragia went back to Manchester United. He became the manager of the club's Under-23 team, returning after 12 years away. He left the club on May 21, 2019.
Managerial Statistics
Here is a summary of Ricky Sbragia's time as manager of Sunderland:
| Team | Nation | From | To | Matches | Won | Drawn | Lost | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunderland |  England |
4 December 2008 | 24 May 2009 | 26 | 6 | 7 | 13 | 23.08 |
Achievements
Ricky Sbragia achieved some notable successes during his playing career:
Walsall
- Fourth Division runners-up: 1979–80
York City
- Fourth Division champions: 1983–84
