Chris Greenacre
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Christopher Mark Greenacre (born 23 December 1977) is an English football manager and former
player Player may refer to: Role or adjective * Player (game), a participant in a game or sport ** Gamer, a player in video and tabletop games ** Athlete, a player in sports ** Player character, a character in a video game or role playing game who i ...
who is the head coach of the
Wellington Phoenix FC Reserves Wellington Phoenix Football Club Reserves is a football team based in Wellington, New Zealand. They currently serve as the reserve side of the Wellington Phoenix FC of the A-League and compete in the New Zealand National League. History From 2 ...
. Greenacre began his career with
Manchester City Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...
in 1996. Whilst at
Maine Road Maine Road was a football stadium in Moss Side, Manchester, England, that was home to Manchester City from 1923 to 2003. It hosted FA Cup semi-finals, the Charity Shield, a League Cup final and England matches. Maine Road's highest attenda ...
he was sent out on loan to
Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It currently competes in , the third tier of the English football league system in the 2025–26 season following relegation. Founded in 1899 a ...
,
Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...
,
Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, sub ...
,
Northampton Town Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the c ...
and
Mansfield Town Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the third level of the English football league system. The club was formed in 1897 as Mans ...
in order to gain first team experience. However, he failed to make the grade at Manchester City and so joined Mansfield Town on a permanent transfer. He became a prolific scorer for the "Stags" scoring 58 goals for the club in three seasons. This led to Division One side
Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team competes in the , the second level of the English football league system. Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, the cl ...
signing him in August 2002. However, despite arriving with high expectations he struggled to cope with the higher level and managed just 9 goals in three seasons at the
Britannia Stadium The bet365 Stadium is an all-seater football stadium in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England and the home of EFL Championship club Stoke City. The stadium was previously called the Britannia Stadium but was renamed on 1 June 2016 when the cl ...
. He left for
Tranmere Rovers Tranmere Rovers Football Club are a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they ...
where he found his level and in four seasons at Tranmere Greenacre scored 53 goals. After his contract expired at Rovers he decided to join New Zealand based,
A-League A-League Men, also known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional soccer league in Australia and New Zealand and the highest level of the Australian soccer league system. Established in 2004 as the A-League by the ...
side
Wellington Phoenix Wellington Phoenix Football Club is a professional football club based in Wellington, New Zealand. It competes in the Australian A-League Men, under licence from Football Federation Australia. Phoenix entered the competition in the 2007–08 ...
. He played three seasons for Wellington helping the club to three consecutive finals series places before retiring in 2012.


Club career

Greenacre was born in
Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 109,766 in the 2021 census, up from 99,251 in the 2011 census. The city is the administrative centre of the wider Metropolit ...
and at the age of 13 he signed schoolboy forms at
Manchester City Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...
, having previously been on the books at
Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The team compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league system. Leeds United have won the League Championship th ...
. He signed as an apprentice at 16, and turned professional in 1995. His senior debut came in February 1997 against
Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team, known as the "Robins", currently compete in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded as Swindon A ...
, when he came on as a substitute, replacing
Paul Dickov Paul Dickov (born 1 November 1972) is a Scottish former professional football manager and player who works as a television pundit for Manchester City TV. Dickov played as a forward from 1990 to 2011, starting his career with Arsenal. He won ...
. He made three further substitute appearances that season, without scoring. During his time at Manchester City most of his first team football came in the form of loan spells with lower league clubs. In his first start for Manchester City in October 1997, he scored the winning goal in a 1–0 win against
Crewe Alexandra Crewe Alexandra Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Crewe, Cheshire, England. Its first team competes in League Two, the fourth level of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Railwaymen' ...
. This was his only goal for the club, and he started only two further matches. Greenacre subsequently went on to play on loan for
Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It currently competes in , the third tier of the English football league system in the 2025–26 season following relegation. Founded in 1899 a ...
,
Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...
and
Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, sub ...
before joining
Mansfield Town Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the third level of the English football league system. The club was formed in 1897 as Mans ...
in 2000. He became a prolific goalscorer at the
Field Mill Field Mill, currently known as One Call Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a Football pitch, football ground in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England, and the home of Mansfield Town F.C., Mansfield Town Football Club. It is the oldest ground in ...
scoring nine goals in 1999–2000, 21 in 2000–01 and 28 in 2001–02. This attracted the attentions from bigger club's and in the summer of 2002 he joined
Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team competes in the , the second level of the English football league system. Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, the cl ...
. His start at Stoke was however hampered by injury. Greenacre had a frustrating 2002–03 which saw him make 33 appearances scoring six goals which included a vital winner against
Brighton & Hove Albion Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club, commonly referred to as Brighton, is a professional football club based in Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Their home gr ...
. In 2003–04 he found himself out of the team after the arrival of
Ade Akinbiyi Adeola Oluwatoyin Akinbiyi (born 10 October 1974) is a football coach and former professional footballer. As a player he was a forward who notably played in the Premier League for Norwich City, Leicester City and Sheffield United, as well as ...
and made 16 appearances scoring twice. In 2004–05 he played in 34 matches but only scored once and was released at the end of the season. He joined
Tranmere Rovers Tranmere Rovers Football Club are a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they ...
in July 2005. Under the management of
Brian Little Brian Little (born 25 November 1953) is an English football manager and former player. As a player, Little was a striker who spent his entire career for Aston Villa in a career that spanned from 1971 to 1980. He made 247 league appearances, ...
, Tranmere finished 18th in League One in the 2005–06 season, but Greenacre himself finished top scorer with 18 goals in 49 games for the club. This included a hat-trick against Yeovil Town on 28 December and two goals against
Oldham Athletic Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is a professional association football club in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. As of the 2025–26 EFL League Two, 2025–26 season, the team competes in EFL League Two, the fourth level of the Eng ...
in August. In 2006–07 under
Ronnie Moore Ronald David Moore (born 29 January 1953) is an English football manager and former player. He has taken charge of several clubs, including Rotherham United, Tranmere Rovers and Hartlepool United. He is currently the chief scout at Hartlepool ...
when Greenacre again finished top scorer, this time with a total of 19 goals, and signed a two-year extension to his contract at
Prenton Park Prenton Park is a Association football, football stadium in the area of Prenton, Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. It is the home ground of Tranmere Rovers F.C., Tranmere Rovers Football Club since opening in 1912, and formerly the home ground ...
. A further 14 goals in all competitions during the 2007–08 season saw him again finish the season as the club's top scorer. He scored his first goals for the 2008–09 season with a brace away at Peterborough in a 2–2 draw. On 21 April 2009, it was announced that Greenacre had signed with
Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...
-based, New Zealand
A-League A-League Men, also known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional soccer league in Australia and New Zealand and the highest level of the Australian soccer league system. Established in 2004 as the A-League by the ...
club
Wellington Phoenix Wellington Phoenix Football Club is a professional football club based in Wellington, New Zealand. It competes in the Australian A-League Men, under licence from Football Federation Australia. Phoenix entered the competition in the 2007–08 ...
on a two-year contract. He made his league debut on 9 August 2009 scoring in a losing effort to the
Newcastle Jets FC Newcastle United Jets Football Club, commonly known as Newcastle Jets, is an Australian professional Association football, soccer club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. It competes in the country's premier competition, the A-League, under Prof ...
. Before a bothersome knee injury, Greenacre had scored five goals in 16 appearances for the Phoenix. Greenacre started season 2010–11 by scoring twice in the opening game of the season against the
Gold Coast United FC Gold Coast United Football Club is an Australian Association football, soccer club based in Gold Coast, Queensland. The earliest incarnation of the club formed in 1966 and its home ground was at Nikiforides Family Park in Broadbeach. The first ...
at
Westpac Stadium Wellington Regional Stadium (commercially known as Sky Stadium through naming rights) is a major sporting venue in Wellington, New Zealand. The stadium's bowl site size is . The stadium was built in 1999 by Fletcher Construction and is situa ...
.


Coaching career

On 22 July 2011, Greenacre accepted a player/coaching role with his club
Wellington Phoenix Wellington Phoenix Football Club is a professional football club based in Wellington, New Zealand. It competes in the Australian A-League Men, under licence from Football Federation Australia. Phoenix entered the competition in the 2007–08 ...
. Greenacre already holds a UEFA B coaching licence and will reportedly be coaching the forwards as well as playing when chosen. On 18 July 2012 he announced his retirement from the game and accepted a position as assistant manager at
Wellington Phoenix Wellington Phoenix Football Club is a professional football club based in Wellington, New Zealand. It competes in the Australian A-League Men, under licence from Football Federation Australia. Phoenix entered the competition in the 2007–08 ...
. In October 2012, Due to the absence of
Ricki Herbert Ricki Lloyd Herbert (born 10 April 1961) is a New Zealand former footballer and manager. He is the current director of football at Hamilton Wanderers AFC. Herbert was formerly head coach of the New Zealand national team, stepping down after ...
due to international duties, Greenacre was appointed as the caretaker manager of the Wellington Phoenix for their Round 2 clash with
Melbourne Heart Melbourne City Football Club is an Australian professional Association football, soccer club based in the South-Eastern Metropolitan Region, South-Eastern region of Melbourne, Victoria. They compete in the A-League Men, the Australian soccer ...
. Despite missing 7 first team players due to international duties, and despite playing an away clash, the Phoenix managed to obtain a 1–1 draw with the Heart, courtesy of a
Paul Ifill Paul Everton Ifill (born 20 October 1979) is a former professional footballer and current manager who played as a forward. He is currently in charge of New Zealand Central League side Wellington Olympic. He spent most of his career playing as ...
penalty. On 26 February 2013, Greenacre was appointed interim manager of Wellington Phoenix until the end of the
season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...
after
Ricki Herbert Ricki Lloyd Herbert (born 10 April 1961) is a New Zealand former footballer and manager. He is the current director of football at Hamilton Wanderers AFC. Herbert was formerly head coach of the New Zealand national team, stepping down after ...
resigned. He was replaced by
Ernie Merrick Ernest Merrick Order of Australia, OAM (born 15 January 1953) is a Scottish-Australian coach, who last managed A-League soccer club Newcastle Jets FC, Newcastle Jets. He was released on 6 January 2020. He was the former head coach of the Hong Ko ...
for the 2013–14 A-League season. Following Merrick's resignation on 5 December 2016, Greenacre was appointed as co-coach of the A-League side alongside
Des Buckingham Des Buckingham (born 7 February 1985) is an English professional football manager who was most recently the head coach of club Oxford United. Buckingham became the youngest head coach in the history of the A-League during the 2016–17 A- ...
, originally as interim coaches, and in January 2017 confirmed for the roles until the end of the 2016-2017 season. Greenacre and Buckingham applied for the role on a permanent basis at the end of the season, but were passed over in favour of Darije Kalezic. On 12 October 2017, Greenacre was appointed coach of Wellington Phoenix Reserves, taking over from Andy Hedge. New Zealand football announced in January 2018 Greenacre would be assistant to Des Buckingham for the
New Zealand national under-20 football team The New Zealand men's national under-20 football team, more commonly known as the Youth All Whites, is controlled by New Zealand Football and represents New Zealand in international Under 20 or youth football competitions. The 25,000 capacity ...
for the
2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup The 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the 22nd edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup, the biennial international men's youth football championship contested by the under-20 national teams of the member associations of FIFA, since its inception in 1977 a ...
cycle. Greenacre would retain his position with the Wellington Phoenix while fulfilling this role. Greenacre began his third period with the Wellington Phoenix A-League side when he was again appointed interim head coach following the departure of Darije Kalezic on 5 March 2018. On 17 November 2021, Greenacre was confirmed as the head coach of the
Wellington Phoenix FC Reserves Wellington Phoenix Football Club Reserves is a football team based in Wellington, New Zealand. They currently serve as the reserve side of the Wellington Phoenix FC of the A-League and compete in the New Zealand National League. History From 2 ...
. In his first season in charge, he guided the team to a third placed finish. Greenacre was appointed as an assistant coach to Darren Bazley's All Whites staff for the September 2023, Olympic Qualifiers in Auckland. New Zealand qualified in an unbeaten campaign and headed to Paris for the 2024, Olympic Games.They beat Fiji in the final. Greenacre was appointed as the head coach of New Zealand's Men's U20 team in January 2024. He was placed in charge for the upcoming 2025 World Cup Qualifying campaign in Samoa. New Zealand became the champions of OFC where they beat New Caledonia in the final, 0-3. New Zealand qualified for the final by beating Fiji, 1-0 after a Ryan Watson goal secured qualification. Greenacre will lead the team for the 2025 U20 Men's World Cup in Chile.


Personal life

Greenacre is a
Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The team compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league system. Leeds United have won the League Championship th ...
supporter.


Career statistics

Source:


Managerial statistics


Honours

New Zealand *
OFC U-19 Championship The OFC U-19 Championship is a tournament held once every two years to decide the under-19 champions of Oceania and also decides who will represent Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) at the biennial FIFA U-20 World Cup. Between 1974 and 2012, ...
:
2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...
Individual *
PFA Team of the Year The Professional Footballers' Association Team of the Year (often called the PFA Team of the Year, or simply the Team of the Year) is an annual award given to a set of 55 footballers across the top four tiers of men's Football in England, En ...
: 2001–02 Third Division Men's U23 Olympic Games Paris Qualification, 2023


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Greenacre, Chris 1977 births Tranmere Rovers F.C. players Stoke City F.C. players Cardiff City F.C. players Manchester City F.C. players Mansfield Town F.C. players Blackpool F.C. players Scarborough F.C. players Northampton Town F.C. players Living people English men's footballers English expatriate men's footballers English expatriate sportspeople in New Zealand English Football League players Footballers from Wakefield Wellington Phoenix FC players Expatriate men's association footballers in New Zealand A-League Men players A-League Men managers Wellington Phoenix FC managers Men's association football forwards English football managers