Derby County Academy duo depart for Chelsea and Liverpool
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Matthew Thorpe (left) and Adam Thorley (right)
Written by Training Ground Guru — October 30, 2021
TWO key Academy coaches have left Derby County.
Matthew Thorpe, the club's Youth Development Phase Lead and Under-15s coach, has already started work at Liverpool as their U15s lead. He had been with the Rams for eight-and-a-half years and became their YDP lead in October 2020.
Meanwhile, U18s coach Adam Thorley (pictured) has been appointed as U15s coach at Chelsea. Other than a short stint at Wolves, where he was a YDP coach for eight months in 2014/15, Thorley has been with the Rams since 2010.
He joined as their Foundation Phase coach and went on to head up the Youth Development Phase. He had been U18s coach and Professional Development Phase coach since July 2020.
Derby run a Category One Academy, but there have inevitably been questions about the future of their youth set-up since they went into administration in September.
The Rams won the U18 Premier League title in 2019/20 and made it to the round of 16 in the Uefa Youth League the following season.
Players who have come through their Academy in recent season include Max Lowe, Louie Sibley, Max Bird, Lee Buchanan, Jason Knight, Liam Delap (now Manchester City) and Kaide Gordon (now Liverpool).
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