The world was a very different place in 1996 – Ryan Giggs was tearing down the wing for Manchester United, Take That were wowing audiences and England’s cricketers were failing to impress at the World Cup. That same year, Steve Coppell took over the hot seat at Manchester City. His stay, however, wasn’t to be a long one.

After taking Crystal Palace to new heights, Coppell had gained a deserved reputation for shrewd management. During his tenure at Selhurst Park, his status had gone from up-and-coming to recently-arrived, and there were many in the game who saw him as a future England boss. All looked rosy for City fans as the new kid on the block took over.

However, all Manchester City fans have come to expect the unexpected over the years. Long-suffering Blues supporters realise more than most that life is a series of steep hills and deep valleys, and the Coppell regime was to be another test of their faith. Just as the wunderkind was laying the foundations for a potential new dynasty, he upped and left. As he rode off into the sunset, everyone at the club had the same question on their lips: why?

 

Coppell went on to explain that he was struggling to cope with the stress involved, and that he had asked the chairman, former City legend Francis Lee, to relieve him of his duties. While the effects of tension in the workplace have been well documented in recent years, in 1996 it was a lesser known issue.

To Lee’s eternal credit, he did his best to persuade Coppell to stay, and to understand what he was going through, even offering him the opportunity to take a holiday before considering his future. However, the former Manchester United winger had made his mind up, and was determined to quit. Manchester City had had a succession of managers in the previous ten years, so they were certainly used to placing ads at the local job centre. In the years since Coppell’s resignation, the Eastlands side have had eight more managers, so little has changed in that area.

For Coppell, a return to Crystal Palace a year later saw him back in familiar surroundings, followed by spells at several other clubs. Manchester City remain the highest profile side the Englishman has ever managed, so it may be that he deliberately stayed away from those roles that offered the most expectation. For a chap who didn’t handle pressure very well, however, Coppell should be applauded for remaining in an industry that defines the very meaning of the word.

In many ways, it was a shame that Coppell didn’t stay at Maine Road. With the tricky genius of Georgi Kinkladze in midfield and the robust Uwe Rosler up front, the club could have gone on to great things, including a quick return to the Premier League, instead of treading water in the lower divisions.

Some years later in 2010, Coppell resigned after a brief stint in charge of Bristol City, and announced his immediate retirement from management. Whether it was stress-related or not wasn’t revealed, but it may be that Coppell is just one of those people who need to feel comfortable in their working environment, and he just didn’t feel right at Ashton Gate.

Over the years, Coppell has proved to be an excellent manager, but his spell at Manchester City wasn’t the highest point in his career. Ultimately, Blues fans missed out on an excellent boss, but if he wasn’t coping well with the expectation it was perhaps for the best that he didn’t remain for too long.

Given the status of Manchester City, and the club’s huge fan-base, Stephen James Coppell may have turned out to be a legend if he’d stayed at Maine Road. However, that success may have ended up coming at too high a price. His was a very brief encounter.