Steve Bould: Former Arsenal player and coach joins QPR backroom team

Bould represented Stoke City, Sunderland and the Gunners during a 20-year playing career in which he earned two England caps.

The 62-year-old former centre-back won three league titles and two FA Cups with Arsenal, including the double in 1997-98.

He also won the League Cup and European Cup Winners’ Cup during his 11 years as a player at Highbury.

In total, he played 375 times for the Gunners, scoring eight goals, as well as making 211 appearances for Stoke, with six goals.

Arsenal won a further three FA Cups during Bould’s tenure as assistant manager under Wenger, before reaching the 2019 Europa League final. He also coached in the club’s academy and the Under-23s.

He was most recently head coach at Lommel in Belgium from 2022 to January this year.

“Firstly, the first team defensively to become better [is the primary target]. If the individuals within that squad can get better defensively, that’s the number one priority,” he said.

“Secondly, I want the younger players further down the line to become great players or great defenders.

“That’s the brief. It’s a big brief and I’m looking forward to it immensely.”