It took Steve McClaren a full two-and-a-half weeks to finally get an assistant in at Newcastle United, but the Magpies head coach finally has a man in position. At the very least the likes of Phil Neville, Bolo Zenden and Steve Round had already rejected McClaren's advances before he was able to get a deputy in place. Eventually, after spending a great deal of time and effort on organising the make-up of his backroom staff, McClaren was able to convince Ian Cathro to join him at St James' Park. The 28-year-old is a relative unknown to most Premier League football fans because he has never worked in England before. Instead, the former Dundee United academy director has learned his craft by moving around Europe - via Portugal and Spain. Assistant manager to Nuno Espirito Santo for two years at Portuguese Primeira Liga side Rio Ave (2012-14), Cathro then followed his boss to Spanish giants Valencia. After a season as deputy at the Mestalla, Cathro resigned in order to return to Britain for personal reasons - and now he finds himself on Tyneside. Whatculture.com/NUFC have taken an in-depth look at the career of Cathro to date... so here are 14 things every Newcastle United supporter needs to know about Steve McClaren's new assistant head coach, Ian Cathro...
NUFC editor for WhatCulture.com/NUFC. History graduate (University of Edinburgh) and NCTJ-trained journalist. I love sports, hopelessly following Newcastle United and Newcastle Falcons. My pastimes include watching and attending sports matches religiously, reading spy books and sampling ales.
