Steve Kean facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Steve Kean

Kean in 2010
Personal information
Full name	Stephen Kean
Date of birth	(1967-09-30) 30 September 1967 (age 57)
Place of birth	Glasgow, Scotland
Position(s)	Winger
Team information
Current team	Torpedo Kutaisi (manager)
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1985–1987	Celtic	0	(0)
1987	→ Swansea City (loan)	4	(0)
1987–1988	Alloa Athletic	1	(0)
1988–1991	Académica Coimbra	9	(1)
1991	Naval	35	(0)
1991–1992	Bath City
1993–1994	Newbury Town
Managerial career
2010–2012	Blackburn Rovers
2013–2017	DPMM FC
2014	Brunei
2021	Melbourne Victory
2023–	Torpedo Kutaisi
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Stephen Kean (born 30 September 1967) is a Scottish football coach and former player. He is currently the manager of the Georgian club Torpedo Kutaisi.

During his playing days, Kean was a winger. He played for clubs in Scotland, England, and Portugal during the 1980s and 1990s. After he stopped playing, he began a new career in coaching. He is well known for managing the English club Blackburn Rovers.

Playing Career

Steve Kean grew up near Glasgow and joined the famous club Celtic after leaving school. It was difficult for him to get into the first team because it was full of star players like Tommy Burns and Paul McStay.

In 1987, he went on loan to Swansea City, where he played alongside Chris Coleman. The two became good friends and worked together again later in their careers.

Kean also played in Portugal for two clubs, Académica Coimbra and Naval. This experience helped him learn to speak Portuguese.

Coaching and Management Career

Kean with Coventry City in 2008

After his playing career ended, Kean became a coach. He worked as an assistant manager for his friend Chris Coleman at several clubs, including Fulham in England and Real Sociedad in Spain.

Managing Blackburn Rovers

In 2009, Kean became a first-team coach at Blackburn Rovers. When the manager Sam Allardyce was sacked in December 2010, Kean took over as the new manager.

His time at Blackburn was very challenging. The team struggled to win matches, which made many fans unhappy. In the 2010–11 Premier League season, the team narrowly avoided being demoted to a lower league.

The next season was even tougher. Despite Kean signing a new contract, the team's poor results continued. On 7 May 2012, Blackburn lost to Wigan Athletic, which meant the club was relegated from the Premier League to the Football League Championship. Kean left the club in September 2012.

Success in Brunei

In 2013, Kean became the manager of DPMM FC, a club in Brunei that plays in Singapore's S.League. His time there was very successful.

• In 2014, his team won the Singapore League Cup.
• In 2015, he led the team to win the S.League championship.
• He was named the S.League's Coach of the Year in 2015.

During this period, Kean also briefly coached the Brunei national team in 2014. He left DPMM FC at the end of the 2017 season.

Recent Career Moves

After leaving Brunei, Kean has worked in different roles around the world.

• Melbourne Victory: In 2020, he joined the Australian club Melbourne Victory as an assistant coach. He later became the interim (temporary) coach for part of the 2021 season.
• Hibernian: In November 2021, Kean returned to Scotland to become the academy director for Hibernian. His job was to find and develop young players for the first team. The youth team did very well, playing against big European clubs like Borussia Dortmund in the 2022–23 UEFA Youth League.
• Torpedo Kutaisi: In May 2023, Kean took on a new challenge as the manager of Torpedo Kutaisi in Georgia.

Managerial Statistics

Honours

Manager

Torpedo Kutaisi

• Georgian Super Cup: 2024

DPMM

• S.League: 2015
• Singapore League Cup: 2014

Individual

• S.League Coach of the Year: 2015