Steve Cooper

In the late 1990s, Cooper joined Wrexham but did not make an appearance for the club. He was signed by manager Brian Flynn, who suggested Cooper pursue a coaching career instead of playing professionally. Cooper later played for Total Network Solutions (now called The New Saints), Rhyl, Bangor City and Porthmadog in the Welsh football leagues. He featured for Bangor City in the UEFA Cup against Sartid Smederevo in 2002.

Early coaching

While a player, Cooper studied for his coaching badges and began coaching at Wrexham's academy. At the age of 27, Cooper obtained his UEFA Pro Licence, becoming one of the youngest coaches to achieve the qualification. After several years coaching at Wrexham's academy, Cooper became the club's head of youth development. On 3 September 2008, Cooper was appointed as a youth coach at Liverpool, initially taking charge of the under-12s. On 18 July 2011, he was named manager of Liverpool's academy. Cooper coached the under-18s for the 2012–13 season, leading them to the semi-finals of the FA Youth Cup, where they lost to Chelsea. While at Liverpool, Cooper oversaw the development of such players as Raheem Sterling, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Ben Woodburn. In 2013, Cooper joined the FA as a youth coach educator and also taught on the FA Wales A Licence course.

England youth

On 13 October 2014, Cooper was appointed as manager of the England national under-16 team. The following year, he took charge of the under-17s, coaching players such as Jadon Sancho, Phil Foden and Callum Hudson-Odoi. Cooper led his side to the final of the 2017 UEFA European U17 Championship, where they lost to Spain 4–1 on penalties following a 2–2 draw. Cooper's U17s then won the 2017 FIFA U17 World Cup in October 2017, beating Brazil 3–1 in the semi-final and Spain 5–2 in the final. The following year, Cooper's side reached the semi-finals of the 2018 UEFA European U17…

Cooper likes his teams to play with "good organisation and structure". He prefers his teams to control the game by being brave on the ball and confident when passing. Cooper coaches his teams to have tactical discipline; defensively, he prefers his players to regain possession through composure and aggression. Cooper cites former Barcelona B coach José Segura as his main influence; the pair worked together at Liverpool's academy. Tactically, Cooper likes to deploy a 4–2–3–1 with two holding midfielders and attacking wing-backs. He has also used a 5–3–2 or 3–5–2 formation to ensure greater defensive stability and more flexibility in attack.

Steven Daniel Cooper was born on 10 December 1979 in Pontypridd, Wales, and raised in nearby Hopkinstown. He is the son of Welsh former football referee Keith Cooper. As a youngster, Cooper played football in the Rhondda leagues and was a Liverpool supporter.