The Tigers assistant boss was offered a number one back in Turkey
Sergej Jakirovic and Dean Holden in conversation(Image: Nick Potts/PA Wire)
Dean Holden says his long-term plan remains to return to management as a number one, but admits now is not the right time because of the job in hand at Hull City.
The City assistant boss has turned down an approach from Turkish outfit Kayserispor to take over as their manager and seal a return to the Turkish Super Lig, having spent a period last season with Adana Demirspor.
Holden, who has management experience at Bristol City and Charlton Athletic, has been a key figure in the current management setup at City after arriving last summer.
Kayserispor had already seen an approach for Marko Salatovic rebuffed previously, having lost Sergej Jakirovic to the top job at the MKM Stadium.
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“There was an offer made for me to go there as the head coach, it just didn’t feel like the right timing for me. There’s a lot to consider,” Holden told Hull Live.
“In this industry, particularly coaching and management, things can change really quickly. One minute you’re in a job and then things, either by your own doing or the club’s doing. You have to look at every opportunity, and for me, there’s still a big job to do here. I’m committed to doing that, to finishing the season with the club. It just didn’t feel like the right opportunity for me right now.”
Having seen Jakirovic depart for City back in the summer, the Super Lig outfit also tried to tempt his other assistant boss, Salatovic, earlier this season.
“Maybe they’ve asked for a few others, and I was at the bottom of the list, and maybe it’s not that flattering, I don’t know,” he joked. “I’ve said it before, I absolutely loved being a manager previously at Bristol City and Charlton, and sometimes it’s only when you leave them jobs that people recognise the decent job that you did when you were in there.
“I retain that ambition to be a number one again, because it’s a huge honour to be a manager of a football club, but right now, great set of players, love working with the staff, and we’ve got a big challenge in front of us. I didn’t feel this was the right moment to leave.”
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