Justin Cochrane left Manchester United for Brentford just 12 months after taking the job as Head of Player Development and Coaching, having previously worked in a role with the FA.
The former footballer was part of a major revamp behind the scenes at Old Trafford in 2021, with Darren Fletcher and John Murtough among the people to take up new jobs.
Cochrane departed the Old Trafford club in June 2022, and now, speaking six months into his position at Brentford, he has explained why he made the decision to swap Manchester for London.
“I had the opportunity to work with Thomas (Frank), the opportunity to work in the Premier League with a progressive club, and I just wanted to learn again. It’s another new challenge,” Cochrane told the official Brentford website.
“I saw it as more learning, working with good people, working in a good environment. I spent a short time working with the AFC Wimbledon first team in League One, but I wanted to test myself in the Premier League. There were some manager offers from League One clubs and some assistant coach roles at other Premier League clubs.
“But, in the end, it was an easy decision. It wasn’t easy to leave Manchester United, but I wanted to go from working with youth players to working with the first team. I did 14 years with youth players at a good level, so to go to Brentford in a first-team environment, I felt like that was the next step for me as a coach.
“Once I had my mind set on Brentford, I’d met Thomas a few times and I’d met Phil, I just felt like it was the right fit; there were some good people to continue learning from, and it’s been a brilliant six months so far.”
Cochrane’s drive to transition from youth to senior football is, evidently, the main reason for his departure from Carrington. Cochrane oversaw age groups 17-23 but since his departure, the club has not publicly confirmed his successor.
Cochrane signed a three-year contract at Brentford as their Head of Coaching and has worked alongside manager Thomas Frank since his appointment last year.
