English soccer manager, born in
Sheffield, South
Yorkshire.
Howard Wilkinson was never a great player, being released by his hometown club
Sheffield Wednesday after three seasons as a pro, but he more than made up for it as a
manager.
He started out at
Notts County before being headhunted by his former club and taking up the job at
Hillsborough following the resignation of
Jack Charlton in 1983. In his first season in charge of
Wednesday, he took them up to the
First Division and built a hungry, physical side that finished 5th in the League and upset the likes of
Manchester United and
Liverpool on the way.
Leaving
Hillsborough in 1988, he went to
Leeds United and led them to the
League title in 1992.
Howard remained at
Leeds until 1997, when he was sacked. Since then he has been a part of the
England national team setup, as
Under-21s coach, Technical Director and
caretaker manager.