Premier League Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna and current Bristol City manager Liam Manning in the Championship has been named as the best manager former Burton Albion boss Dino Maamria has faced in his career in an exclusive interview with The Deck’s League One Lowdown podcast.Â
The hosts were fortunate to be able to sit down with the experienced manager to discuss his career to date and his plans for the future in a wide-ranging interview. Dino was asked who the best manager he ever faced in the opposition dug-out was and named Liam Manning during his MK Dons spell and Kieran McKenna during the League One promotion winning campaign as his top choices.
Speaking to hosts Jamie Johnson and Jake Tonge on the League One Lowdown Dino stated:
“There is a few I really liked, Liam Manning at MK Dons in the first year”
“I’ll have to say Ipswich Town’s Kieran McKenna”
“I knew that when they were the top end of League One, I was telling people at the time this (team) will go up to the Championship and get straight promotion because they were so good”
“So, I will choose Kieran McKenna”
McKenna was able to get the best of Dino’s Burton coming out 4-0 victors during a spell from January to April in which the Tractor Boys scored four or more goals on six occasions including 6-0 thrashings of Charlton Athletic and Exeter City before going on to win back-to-back promotions to the Premier League.
Manning’s MK Dons on the other hand failed to get past Dino’s Burton with the game ending in a 1-1 draw with a first half goal by Victor Adeboyejo ruled out by a late equaliser from Bradley Johnson.
Mckenna’s Ipswich Town in League One
Dino was unfortunate enough to come across McKenna’s Ipswich Town at the start of their monumental push up English football’s pyramid, their dynamic style of play and clinical nature saw them demolish teams on route. There were very few who were able to stop them in this run and it is completely understandable that he was named as the top manager by the former Burton boss.