Charlton Athletic boss Lee Bowyer has admitted that he never wanted to be a manager during his playing career, due to the challenges that come with the role.

Bowyer first took charge of Charlton on a caretaker basis in March 2018, and guided the club to promotion from League One in his first full season in management during the 2018/19 campaign, with the Addicks now second in the Championship following an unbeaten start to the current league season.

Now however, Bowyer has revealed that management had not previously been in his plans while he was a player, as he told TalkSport: “Yeah, because it’s more challenging as a manager. The preparation and everything that goes with this job."

It appears that his experiences in the dugout have changed Bowyer's perspective on management however, as he continued: “I loved training and playing as a footballer – that’s why I continued playing until I was 35. And now I’m enjoying it in a different way as a manager."

Discussing his particular approach to the role, the former midfielder added: “Man management is so important. To have the players believe in what you’re telling them and every day on the training pitch you’ve got to keep them happy and progress, both individually and as a team.

“The balance that we have here is working really well and I think all of the players from when the first day they came into this football club to now, whether they were permanent deals or loans, have all improved."

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Reflecting on the success he has had at Charlton so far, Bowyer believes that that has vindicated the managerial style he has chosen to employ, as he claimed: “It just proves that my staff and myself are doing the right things. Everybody is happy here.

“The club wasn’t in a good place when I took over, so from where it was then to where it is now it’s a great achievement.”

Charlton are next in action on Saturday afternoon, when they host Birmingham City at The Valley.

The Verdict

This is quite an interesting one.

The prospect of a life after a playing career in football is something that every player must face as they reach the sort of age that Bowyer was when he took the decision to retire, something which can often be a daunting thing to do.

Obviously not every player is going to want to go into management, and with the number of players considerably outweighing the number of managerial positions there are, that is probably a good thing.

Even so, the success that Bowyer has enjoyed during his time at Charlton, means that there will be plenty of Addicks fans who will be relieved that their former player did indeed decide to go back on his original decision not to enter into the managerial game.