MK Dons appoint Crawley boss Lindsey as head coach

Former Gillingham midfielder Scott Lindsey began his EFL coaching career on the staff at Lincoln City

MK Dons have appointed Crawley Town boss Scott Lindsey as their new head coach.

The 52-year-old drops down a division to replace Mike Williamson, who left Stadium MK last week to take over at Carlisle United.

Lindsey led Crawley to promotion from the fourth tier last season, crushing MK Dons 8-1 on aggregate before a 2-0 win over Crewe Alexandra at Wembley.

"I think it's clear to everyone just how much potential there is at MK Dons, and I'm thrilled to be joining to help achieve it," he told the Dons website.

"I can't wait to get stuck in with the players, and look forward to meeting the supporters as soon as possible."

First-team coaches Jamie Day and Carl Laraman, and goalkeeping coach Steve Hale, have also made the move from Crawley.

Lindsey was in charge of the West Sussex club for 20 months, having left previous club Swindon Town to join them in January 2023.

Crawley are 18th in League One, while the Dons are one place lower in League Two following Saturday's 1-1 draw at home to Doncaster Rovers, when long-serving defender Dean Lewington was in caretaker charge.

Lindsey is their fifth boss since Russell Martin left to take over at Swansea City in the summer of 2021.

And he is the first to be appointed since owner Pete Winkelman sold the club to a Kuwait-based consortium, headed by businessman and entrepreneur Fahad Al Ghanim.

The new chairman said: "It's clear to everyone who's followed the EFL over the last few years just how good a coach Scott Lindsey is.

"Having met with him, I was encouraged to hear how he thinks we can improve, and ultimately convinced by his vision for the team."

Number one target

Scott Lindsey with the League Two play-off trophy following Crawley's promotion

MK Dons climbed as high as the Championship in the 2015-16 season but Lindsey's first task will be to try and restore the League One status they lost via relegation in 2023.

He was in charge at Crawley for 87 games, the last one a 2-1 defeat at league leaders Wrexham on Saturday.

Sporting director Liam Sweeting was in charge of finding a replacement for Wiliamson and he said: "I don't think it's much of a secret to say Scott was our number one target from day one, so I'm absolutely delighted that he's agreed to join the club at such an exciting time.

"Scott's footballing record in recent seasons is phenomenal, proving time and again that he can maximise what's in front of him and develop a brilliant coaching environment."

The length of the contract agreed with Lindsey, who also achieved promotion in 2017 when he was assistant manager at Forest Green Rovers, has not been disclosed by the club.

Meanwhile, Crawley chairman Preston Johnson said: "Scott was such a big part of the success we had in the last year or so. We wanted Scott to stay with us, but ultimately he made the decision to leave, which we respect."

They plan to utilise a "data driven approach" to find his successor.

Analysis - An 'ironic' appointment

By Simon Oxley, BBC 3CR sports reporter

Well, how ironic - the man who masterminded the demolition of the Dons in last season’s play-offs is now their manager.

Scott Lindsey’s Crawley side went on to win at Wembley, but now he’s dropping back down to League Two at Stadium MK following the departure of Mike Williamson.

And two of his players from Crawley, Lawrence Maguire and Liam Kelly, are already there.

The new Kuwaiti owners have acted swiftly to replace Williamson, and with a man who knows the division rather than a higher-profile name.