Jon Brady is on the verge of being Port Vale’s next manager as the League One side begins talks with the former Northampton Town man.
The Australian manager has been without a club since leaving the Cobblers in late 2024, stepping down after guiding the club out of League Two and into a comfortable mid-table position in the third tier.
Brady Becomes Favourite
However, Brady has now moved to the front of the pack, with Pete O’Rourke revealing that the 50-year-old is in advanced talks with Port Vale to take over in time for the club’s FA Cup clash with Fleetwood Town.
Despite being managerless, Vale still had something to shout about on New Year’s Day, completing a 5-1 trouncing of fellow strugglers Blackpool under the guidance of caretaker boss Jamie Smith.
A big turnaround is still needed for the 2nd-placed League Two finishers from last season to survive the drop, with nine points separating them from 20th-placed Burton Albion ahead of Sunday’s fixture against Barnsley.
Is Brady The Right Man?
With plenty of EFL experience at Northampton Town, Port Vale have gone for a much safer pick in Jon Brady to help them avoid the drop compared to inexperienced names like Liam Ridgewell.
Brady was a big factor in the Cobblers’ turnaround over the past few years, utilising the talents of Sam Hoskins and Mitch Pinnock to propel the club into League One back in 2023.
He had got the club on the right path in League One before his resignation in December of the following year, providing Sixfields with a very stable platform to perhaps go on and do better things.
Now faced with a bigger task at Port Vale, Brady has to prove he can fight back when the pressure is on, a situation he did not really find himself in at Town before moving on.
With most of January still available for him to change the squad as he wishes, the first few weeks of a Jon Brady tenure will be crucial in the Valiants’ chances of avoiding a return to League Two at the first time of asking.