Table of Biography
Dean Smith is a professional football manager and former player from England. Moreover, Dean Smith is the head coach of the EFL Championship club, Norwich City.
Early life
Dean Smith was born on the 19th of March, 1971, in West Bromwich, England. According to his birth date, he is 53 years old and holds British nationality. Moreover, he has a birth sign of Pisces, and he believes in Christianity by religion.
In addition, he is the son of Alfred Smith (father) and Vesta Smith (mother). His father worked as a Steward at Villa Park for 25 years and was a lifelong supporter of Aston Villa.
Sadly, his father died on 27 May 2020 after contracting COVID-19. He grew up with his elder brother, Dave Smith.
Dean Smith – Education
Talking about his academic career, he completed his graduation from the University of Kansas.
Dean Smith – Professional Life
Dean Smith began his playing career at Walsall, as the club suffered relegation from the Third Division in 1989–90 under John Barnwell’s stewardship. Under new manager Kenny Hibbitt, they then struggled to adjust to life in the Fourth Division, finishing 16th in 1990–91 and 15th in 1991–92.
Dean was moved to Hereford United for £80,000 in the summer of 1994, setting a club record for the “Bulls.” Under John Layton, they placed 16th in the Third Division in 1994–95.
When Edgar Street reached the Third Division play-offs in 1995–96, he served as Graham Turner’s captain. Despite Smith scoring just two minutes into the first leg, Darlington defeated Edgar Street 4–2 in the semifinals.
Caption: Dean Smith during his early football career (Source: LifeBogger)
In August 1997, he signed a contract with Tommy Taylor’s Leyton Orient, with a tribunal determining the fee to be £42,500. In 1997–98, he scored 10 goals in 51 games. If Orient had not been fined three points, they would have finished one point outside the Third Division play-offs.
In the 1998–1999 season, he led Orient to the play-offs and scored a penalty in the shootout win over Rotherham United in the semifinals. But in the Wembley championship game, Scunthorpe United defeated his team 1-0.
He made 49 appearances throughout the season and scored 10 goals. Moreover, he joined Port Vale, managed by Martin Foyle, in July 2004. He played the “Valiants” in 13 League One games and two cup games during the 2004–05 season.
Coaching career
His playing career came to an end in January 2005 when he left Vale Park to work as the junior team coach at his former team Leyton Orient. He began working at Leyton Orient in January 2005 as a youth coach before being promoted to the role of assistant manager near the end of the 2004–05 season.
Along with his classmates Roy Keane, Brendan Rodgers, and Ian McParland, he received his UEFA Pro Licence in 2008. He and longtime manager Martin Ling left Orient in January 2009 due to a poor run of results. Brentford of the Championship was given Dean’s management on November 30, 2015.
Brentford completed the 2015–16 season in ninth place, and he was able to collect £3.6 million through the sales of James Tarkowski and Toumani Diagouraga. He signed 18 players in preparation for the 2016–17 season, including Romaine Sawyers and Rico Henry (worth £1.5 million) from his former team Walsall.
Recent career
By adding Matty Cash ($14 million from Nottingham Forest), Ollie Watkins ($28 million from Brentford), Lamare Bogard ($undisclosed cost from Feyenoord), Emiliano Martnez ($17 million from Arsenal), and Bertrand Traoré ($17 million from Lyon) to the team in the summer of 2020, he strengthened it.
The only time a team scored seven goals past the Premier League champions in 67 years occurred on October 4 when he led Aston Villa to a 7-2 home victory over Premier League champions Liverpool in the third game of the 2020–21 season.
Emiliano Buendia, Leon Bailey, and Danny Ings were signed by him for a total of £83 million in preparation for the £100 million transfer of Jack Grealish to Manchester City, an English record. Additionally, the team signed free-agent defender Axel Tuanzebe from Manchester United and added former player Ashley Young from Inter Milan.
He and Aston Villa parted ways on November 7, 2021, following a run of five consecutive Premier League losses. According to Chief Executive Christian Purslow, the decision was made as a result of Aston Villa’s failure to continue its rising trend in 2021–22.
He signed a two-and-a-half-year contract on November 15, 2021, to replace Daniel Farke as head coach of Norwich City. Moreover, he won Southampton 2-1 in his debut game in charge.
Achievements
As a former player and manager, he has earned some honors and recognitions. In January 2013, and August 2015, he earned the Football League One Manager of the Month. As a Walsall manager, he guided the team to the Football League Trophy runner-up: in 2015.
Caption: Dean Smith with the championship trophy with his team player (Source: Instagram)
Dean Smith – Net Worth 2024
He has earned a huge sum of money in his career as a player and manager. Moreover, his net worth estimated at around $5 million and he has not shared his income and salary in public.
Relationship Status
Dean Smith married his wife, Nicola. With the marriage, the couple has two kids, a son, Jamie, and a daughter. Besides being a former footballer and manager, he is a keen chess player and a West Midlands school chess champion as a child. Moreover, he is not a part of controversy or rumors at the moment.
Body Measurements
This manager stands 6 feet tall and weighs around 84 kg. Moreover, this man has brown hair brown eyes, and a waist of 31 inches.
Caption: Dean Smith cheering his team (Source: Instagram)
Social Media
On his Instagram, there are 810 followers. Other than that, he is not active on Facebook and Twitter.