James Beattie interested in Accrington Stanley manager's job

James Beattie has expressed an interest in becoming the new manager of Accrington, the club have confirmed.

Managing director Rob Heys told BBC Radio Lancashire that Stanley have had around 40 serious applications for the vacancy, with interviews scheduled to take place early next week.

Previous manager Leam Richardson left the club last month to become Paul Cook's assistant at Chesterfield.

Ex-England striker Beattie has been player-coach at Stanley since November.

John Coleman - who spent more than 12 years as Accrington boss - and Paul Stephenson - who served as Richardson's number two last season - are also in the frame.

"We said at the start that there wasn't as much of a hurry as the previous two occasions we've been without a manager," said Heys. "The summer affords you more time to look at all the applicants, draw up a shortlist and do some interviews.

"We've had around 100 applicants, of which around 40 are what you would call genuine. We'll dwindle that down to a shortlist of around seven or eight and conduct some interviews next week.

"We want someone who's going to keep the team spirit going, someone who's going to work very hard with a limited budget, and someone who fits in with the general feel of Accrington Stanley."

When asked about the possibility of making an internal appointment and either Beattie or Stephenson being given the job, Heys added: "They both expressed an interest in having a conversation about it.

"To be fair to everyone who's applied externally, they all go through the same process. All applicants are treated the same."

Beattie played 27 times in all competitions for Accrington last season, scoring seven goals.

In an interview with BBC Sport earlier this year, the 35-year-old said he was enjoying his coaching role, but the idea of becoming a manager did not greatly appeal to him at that stage.

"You never say never in football. It's all about crossroads in your life. I'm enjoying being here, being part of Leam's team and part of the club," Beattie commented in March.

"I do a little bit of coaching. Leam takes the training sessions, with me just being there and contributing vocally. I'll maybe take some of the lads at the end of training for a shooting session, but mainly I'm just trying to work mentally with the guys and try to toughen them up a bit.

"That's the side of coaching I enjoy and I would like to do something on in the future."