Who is new Motherwell manager Alfred Johansson?

[Getty Images] Motherwell have found their Jens Berthel Askou replacement in the form of 35-year-old Swedish coach Alfred Johansson, but who exactly is the Steelmen's new manager? While Johansson has never played the game professionally, he went down the academic route on his journey to becoming a head coach. Alongside earning a bachelors degree in sports science in Sweden, he completed a postgraduate course in high-performance football coaching in Lisbon. Having already earned an advanced football certification from Uefa between 2014-2015, he went on to complete his pro licence in 2024. It seems Motherwell can expect a heavy focus on youth development under their new boss. Since 2011, Johansson has spent much of his career working with youth teams. He began in Sweden working with the youth squads at Enkopings SK in 2011 before a spell as academy manager at Djurgardens IF until 2015. After that, it was off to Copenhagen where he started as a youth manager and chief analyst for the under-19 team. A brief return to Sweden to take charge of AIK's under-17 side followed before heading back to Denmark to re-join Copenhagen as under-19 head coach. The 35-year-old enjoyed a successful spell back in Denmark, leading Copehagen's under-19 side to Uefa Youth League wins against sides like Bayern Munich and Manchester United. Then in 2023 he was snapped up by Norwegian side Rosenborg for his first senior managerial role. In his first season in professional management, Johansson guided Rosenborg to a fourth-place finish in the Norwegian top-flight and secured a return to European football after a 12-month absence by winning over half of their league matches. In the 2025 league campaign his side finished seventh in the Norwegian top flight and kept 11 clean sheets in the process - the second highest in the division. But he was sacked in May this year after just one win in his opening five games of the most recent Norwegian season.