Carlisle United confirm Paul Simpson deal complete

Carlisle United have officially announced that Paul Simpson has agreed a three-year deal to manage the club.

As exclusively revealed by Cumbria Crack earlier, the deal was close to being agreed and that has now been confirmed by United in a statement which followed.

Chairman Andrew Jenkins said: “I think everybody has known that we wanted Paul to stay beyond the Bradford game and that he wanted to stay, and that has been reflected in the swift manner in which we have concluded this agreement.

“The length of the contract reflects the fact that we all feel this is a project for the longer-term, and not just a quick fix, and we feel Paul is the right person to take that on.

“Paul has stated quite clearly that he wants to improve aspects of the club on and off the field, and we share that vision.

“He spoke about the fact that he needed things to be right, and we always knew that we had to seize this moment, and not let it slip by.

“We’re delighted that we’ve been able to do that and it’s now time to give him our backing as he sets off on what we hope will be an exciting journey.”

The statement went on: “Simpson, 55, became a local hero when he took over a struggling club during the 2003/04 season.

“He galvanised the Blues, almost saving them from an impossible situation, but led the charge back into the ranks of the Football League with back-to-back promotions from the Conference and up to League One through 2004/05 and 2005/06.

“A man with a wealth of football and management experience – he won the World Cup as boss of the England U20 squad in 2017 – he commits with a real sense of purpose and with time to implement the changes he feels he needs to make.”