Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Lydia Bedford was Leicester City manager in the WSL in 2021-22
ByEmma SandersBBC Sport women’s football news reporter- Published1 hour ago
Returning as head coach for England Women's under-23s felt like a "full circle moment" for Lydia Bedford.
The 38-year-old began her coaching career with the Football Association and has managed several youth teams, including England's under-15s, 16s and 17s.
She became the first woman to hold a coaching position at a Premier League club when she took over Brentford's under-18s boys' academy in 2023.
And she has gathered first team women's football experience as manager of Women's Super League side Leicester City and Canadian club Calgary Wild, as well as previously taking on an assistant coach role at Arsenal.
Her career has been varied and rewarding, but Bedford has always eyed a return.
"I've got fulfilment out of every decision that I've made in my career so far and each [experience] has been great in their own way," she said.
"But it kind of feels like a full circle moment to be able to come back. The job I always wanted growing up was to be England manager one day.
"You've got to get experiences that will help you along the way. Why would I not want to come back and be in an under-23s environment to help our senior team tick the next the box, which is to win the Women's World Cup next year?
"I'm also looking forward to singing the English national anthem. I've heard a lot of the Canadian national anthem in the last few weeks!"
Who better for Bedford to learn from than three-time European champion Sarina Wiegman?
The Lionesses head coach will work closely with Bedford at St George's Park on the development of England's youth players.
"Seeing the success of the senior team over the last few years and knowing how closely I'd be able to work with Sarina and her staff in this role, it seemed like a bit of a no-brainer [to return]," added Bedford.
"It's a great opportunity to learn from someone I consider to be the world's best and to help to provide the next group of players to compete to win more."
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Bedford was sacked six games into her second season at Leicester City, despite surviving WSL relegation the year before.
It was her first role in senior club football and Bedford admits it was a learning curve that she needed to go through.
"It definitely, as a coach and a person, makes you think about what you really want in life," she said.
"To lose my job at Leicester, then get the opportunity to support Jonas Eidevall at Arsenal and see the complete opposite end of the WSL, and what good support and structure looks like, was really eye-opening.
"I think that experience at Arsenal has helped me in a lot of ways."
The opportunity to later move to Brentford and work in the boys' game was something Bedford could not pass up.
She helped the academy build structure and developed players before taking on a new project at Calgary Wild - one of six teams in a newly formed Northern Super League (NSL) - the first professional women's football division in Canada.
It was a wide-ranging role which tested Bedford and she hopes to use what she learned in England.
"We lost our sporting director in December and effectively for the last three months, I was sporting director, head of recruitment and head coach," said Bedford.
"Managing people and players has been something that I've had a lot of experience doing now. One of the reasons I want to do this job is because I want to be a great coach.
"I'm blessed. I've got 18 members of staff that are working with the under-23s and they are really experienced. I don't need to be the physio, or the nutritionist, or the chef. I can just really focus on orchestrating and pulling that together."
