25-06-2025
Former Arsenal assistant Steve Bould set to join QPR in defensive coaching role
Former Arsenal assistant Steve Bould is set to join Queens Park Rangers in a role focused on developing young defenders.
The position would mark a first in English football for Bould, 62, since he was sacked as Arsenal's Under-23 coach in May 2021, ending a 30-year association with the club.
The former centre-back has been out of management since stepping down as head coach of Lommel SK, the second tier Belgian side owned by City Football Group, in January to return to the United Kingdom.
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Bould's role is primarily focused on medium to long-term defender development. QPR have identified a scarcity of young defenders of high potential across European football's five major leagues. They believe appointing Bould to work specifically in this area will reap rewards down the line.
Bould's move to QPR comes after the Championship club confirmed the appointment of former Rennes boss Julien Stephan as their new head coach on Wednesday.
Stephan, 44, replaces Marti Cifuentes, whose departure by mutual consent was confirmed on Monday following a period of gardening leave.
Bould is a club appointment rather than part of Stephans' backroom team, but will support first-team staff as part of his remit.
Bould made 287 appearances for Arsenal during 11 years at the club, winning the league title three times and the FA Cup twice. He was part of Arsenal's esteemed back four alongside Lee Dixon, Tony Adams and Nigel Winterburn under the management of George Graham and Arsene Wenger, as the club enjoyed a period of sustained success during the late 1980s and 90s.
He returned to Arsenal as a youth team coach in June 2001 and led the Under-18s to successive Premier Academy League titles in 2009 and 2010, and the FA Youth Cup in the 2008-09 season.
In May 2012, he was promoted to assistant manager under Wenger, replacing Pat Rice. He held the role for seven years before taking the Under-23s head coach role in a switch with Freddie Ljungberg during a restructuring of the club's coaching set-up.
Bould joined Lommel in 2022 and spent two and a half years at the club.
QPR finished 15th in the Championship during the 2024-25 campaign.
