REAL MADRID have snapped up an 18-year-old coach dubbed the world’s youngest senior football manager after he took charge of Welsh club Caerwys FC.
Jordan Hadaway stepped up as the head coach of the fifth-tier North West Wales League side in November.
The measure of the teenager’s expertise has also been recognised by LaLiga giants Real, who brought Jordan over for a series of lectures and coaching sessions at their Estadio Santiago Bernabeu home.
That led to the Everton fan, who also has a soft spot for Jose Mourinho, becoming a fully paid up member of their summer soccer clinics in the United Kingdom.
Speaking to SportBible, he recalled: “I was recommended to the club, who waited for me to finish my UEFA B licence, and I’m now one of Real Madrid’s members of staff.
“It’s a pretty privileged position – getting to rub shoulders with the likes of Raul, Alvaro Arbeloa, Roberto Carlos and Santiago Solari – and I’m loving it.”
Jordan was initially joint-coach at Flintshire minnows Caerwys before illness demanded partner Ethan Jones take a break from the game.
And the youngster believes if age is no barrier to commanding respect in the dressing room – explaining that, if you’re good enough, you’re old enough.
He told NWSport: “You gain your respect in football through knowledge and I know I have the knowledge for the lads to give respect to me.
“To be honest I am not a confident person outside of football, but when I get into the changing rooms or on the training ground I am confident and give it 100 per cent.
“I think throughout my playing days I was always a leader on the pitch, guided and organising the team.
“My main strength in my opinion is motivating people and keeping them going right until the end and as I progress and learn more I can only become more confident.”
Whether Jordan turns his early success in the game into a full career remains to be seen.
Despite possessing his UEFA B licence, his aim has been becoming a primary school teacher while studying on Merseyside for a degree in Sports & PE, combined with Special Educational Needs.
Real Madrid invited the coach for seminars at the BernabeuCredit: Reuters
Either way, coaching has been the next best thing after a chance to play at a high level was ended age 16.
Jordan explained: “I was never going to get paid for playing football so I didn’t see the point in doing it.
“I was like Tony Hibbert – steady, six or seven out of ten every week but I never went beyond the halfway line!”
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
