Strudwick leaves Arsenal to become Director of Medical at West Brom
Strudwick was Head of Performance at Manchester United under Sir Alex Ferguson
Written by Simon Austin — July 5, 2022
ARSENAL Head of Academy Performance Tony Strudwick has joined West Brom as their Director of Medical Services.
Strudwick is one of the most experienced and respected performance practitioners in football, having previously worked for England, Manchester United, Blackburn Rovers, Sheffield Wednesday, West Ham and Coventry City. The 49-year-old is also Head of Performance for the Wales national team and recently helped them qualify for the World Cup for the first time since 1958.
He will continue in that role while working for West Brom, as he did at Arsenal, TGG understands. Director of Medical is an all-encompassing role that will oversee both the medical and performance departments.
Strudwick was Head of Performance at Manchester United for 11 years and a key lieutenant of Sir Alex Ferguson. Former United first-team coach Rene Meulensteen said: “Tony was instrumental to the success we achieved during that period and deserves a huge amount of credit. He is a top professional and one of the best in his field in the world.”
Strudwick joined Arsenal in May 2021, replacing Des Ryan. His move to West Brom reunites him with manager Steve Bruce, with whom he worked for a very short period at Sheffield Wednesday.
Chief Executive Ron Gourlay said: “We are delighted to have Tony at the football club. He is one of the very best in his field of expertise and arrives at the club with an incredible CV.
“Tony is highly respected within football, and we believe his appointment will strengthen the medical and sports science departments which he will oversee. His appointment is another positive step in improving standards across the football club as we ready ourselves to take on the challenges ahead.”
Strudwick, who begins work at the club’s Walsall training ground later this month, added: “I’m delighted to be joining Albion and to be teaming up again with Steve Bruce who I’ve worked with before.
“When I spoke to Steve, I was pleased to hear energy and passion were still evident in his voice. When I worked with him before I quickly struck up an excellent relationship with his coaching staff and I’m looking forward to working with the team again.
“The opportunity to join the club and the scope of the role will allow me to have a significant, positive impact and I’m excited by what we can achieve together. Albion is a traditional club with loyal support and is deep-rooted in its community.
"Having visited The Hawthorns on various occasions I have always been struck by the connection between players, staff and fans – and that’s something I hope will continue to grow in the future. It’s important for me to be at a club that is connected with its key stakeholders, most importantly the fans."
A number of key staff have left Arsenal's Academy since the end of last season. Last month it was announced that Under-23 Head Coach Kevin Betsy was exiting to become manager of Crawley Town, with Arsenal U18 lead Dan Micciche as his assistant.
Head of Performance Shad Forsythe has also departed after eight years. Strudwick was our guest on Episode #13 of the TGG Podcast and also delivered this presentation, Creating the Football Athlete of the Future.
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