Dwight Yorke FINALLY lands a new managerial job – after Man United legend repeatedly hit out at the lack of opportunities available to him

Former Manchester United striker Dwight Yorke has landed the second job of his managerial career.

The 52-year-old – who scored 65 goals for United in 152 games between 1998 and 2002 – has been confirmed as the new manager of the Trinidad and Tobago men’s national team.

‘I am proud and privileged to receive the honour of leading the Trinidad and Tobago national team,’ said Yorke.

‘The opportunity to work with this talented, close-knit group of players is something I look forward to.

‘Having helped Trinidad and Tobago to the semi-finals of the CONCACAF Gold Cup in 2000, captained the side at the 2006 World Cup and been assistant manager, my love and commitment to my national team is well documented.’

Dwight Yorke has been hired as the manager of the Trinidad and Tobago men’s national team

Yorke was previously in charge of Macarthur FC in Australia from July 2022 to January 2023

Trinidad and Tobago currently sit in 102nd place in the FIFA men’s world rankings.

They have only once qualified for the World Cup – back in 2006 when Yorke played in all three group games. 

Yorke’s appointment by the country he represented 72 times as a player comes 21 months after he was sacked by Australian club side Macarthur FC.

He was dismissed from that role after delivering a scathing speech in which he likened the club to a ‘pub team’ and described it as a ‘Mickey Mouse’ operation.

Yorke later made an effort to clarify that his criticism had been aimed at the club’s senior management, rather than his former players.

He took charge of 19 Macarthur matches – winning 10, drawing three and losing six.

Yorke’s move to Macarthur came after he had been left frustrated by the lack of opportunities offered to him in England. 

He was overlooked for the Sutton United job in 2019. 

Two years later, Yorke then publicly expressed his disappointment at not being hired by Aston Villa when Steven Gerrard was appointed instead. He had spent almost a decade of his playing career at Villa Park, scoring 98 goals.

Former striker Yorke scored 65 goals for Man United in 152 games between 1998 and 2002

Yorke wanted the Aston Villa job in 2021 before it was given to Steven Gerrard (pictured)

Earlier this year –  around 13 months on from his exit from Macarthur – Yorke hinted during an interview with The Mirror that he might need to buy a club in order to get another manager’s job.

‘Its been talked about heavily in previous years,’ he said. ‘The people that I come across in football, we’ve spoken about it.

‘Forming a consortium, trying to get a football team to get the right backing from maybe black ownership, black millionaires or billionaires, so to speak, to embrace it. It’s something that’s probably worth having a conversation about again in terms of going forward.

‘Because, as you know, we keep reverting back to the facts about the struggles of black managers to get into these high positions. So the only way forward, maybe, is to buy a football team.’

Yorke added: ‘I recall having the conversation with my close friend Andy Cole. He said to me: “Its a waste of time. You’ll never get a job in English football.” He knows what he was talking about. But I embrace the challenge. I like to defy the odds.

Andy Cole pictured jumping on Yorke’s back when they were Man United team-mates in 1998

Yorke has previously spoken publicly about the lack of managerial opportunities offered to him

‘I did it as a player and I’ll do it again as a manager. I showed in Australia that I’m a proven winner, that I can win and manage at any level.

‘But you need that opportunity. Unfortunately, as a player you have control over your ability and when you play. But when you become a manager, you rely on that opportunity to be given to you.’

Yorke previously served as Trinidad and Tobago’s assistant manager shortly after he retired from playing in 2009.