Richie Wellens has left Swindon Town to become the new manager of Salford City.
The switch from League One to League Two has appeared to be a formality on Tuesday when Wellens was not in the dugout for Swindon’s 4-2 defeat to Plymouth Argyle, in order to hold negotiations with the Ammies.
Promoted with Swindon last season, Wellens succeeds Graham Alexander who was sacked early last month.
Co-owner Paul Scholes had been placed in temporary charge of first-team affairs while Salford conducted their search, which had concluded terms with Wellens.
The former Doncaster Rovers manager, who played for The Ammies in the National League North in 2016, said: “It’s a club on the up and I’m a manager that wants to win games.
“Coming to Salford is an opportunity to win week in, week out, and it’s a fantastic opportunity for me to take the club to where they want to be.
“The club has had unbelievable success in the last six years with Bern and Jonno (Bernard Morley and Anthony Johnson) winning promotions and Graham Alexander getting them into the Football League, and I’m looking forward to continuing that success.
“Promotions at this level are more difficult, but the rewards are greater and I believe in continuing that success as well as giving the club an identity and style that reflects the people of Salford.”
Salford lie on the verge of the play-off places in League Two in 10th place, with four wins coming from their opening ten matches.
Co-owner and Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville added: “Richie is someone we know well from Manchester United and his previous spell here.
“He has success at this level after winning the League Two title with Swindon Town last season, and his philosophy to play attacking football is what we want to bring fans at The Peninsula Stadium.
“His knowledge of the area and the club having played for ourselves and come through the youth ranks at Manchester United also fits in with the profile we were looking for.
“We look forward to achieving success together.”
Swindon Town have placed assistant manager Noel Hunt in charge for the ‘foreseeable future’ as they now commence a search for a successor to Wellens.
