Three reasons Bradford want Michael Duff – and likely January transfer budget ...Middle East

Success has not proven entirely straightforward for Bradford City, currently flying high in League One.

After hitting top spot last month, the club fielded the call they had been dreading. Preston North End wanted to speak to manager Graham Alexander, a significant blow to a club that had been prospering under the likeable and very able Scot.

Alexander’s departure has been an emotional one for City. Some staff and the man himself were in tears when he said his goodbyes and it has been quite the journey. Appointed in 2023 with the club at a low ebb and his managerial stock in the doldrums, it took bravery on both sides to take the plunge back then.

A dramatic promotion from League Two in 2025 – secured with a 96th-minute winner against Fleetwood – etched his name in club folklore and Bradford have kicked on from there. Firmly in the promotion mix, they’re also a win away from the last eight of the Carabao Cup.

But a conversation shortly after his appointment tells a story. Alexander’s commitment to the Bantams was rock solid but he listed Preston as one of the jobs he would view as the “pinnacle” of his managerial career during those early “getting-to-know-you” talks.

When North End came knocking last week, it was therefore no surprise that he signalled a desire to leave and despite the deep disappointment in the boardroom there was no bitterness about his decision.

The Championship club more than doubled his wages and triggered a £500,000 compensation clause in his contract to get it done – a figure that, compared to the £25,000 they got when Phil Parkinson left for Bolton, is easily the biggest the club has ever pocketed for a manager.

Continuity seems to be driving the search of his replacement, which will conclude this week. Interim boss Mark Trueman is currently scheduled to take the team for a midweek EFL Trophy game against Rotherham but Michael Duff, the former Cheltenham, Swansea and Huddersfield boss, will be the man charged with maintaining Bradford’s upward momentum.

Why Bradford want Michael Duff

He has impressed in interviews and possesses many of the qualities that Alexander, a former teammate and friend, brought to the role.

Reaction among fans has been mixed – just as it was for Alexander – but there’s sound logic to the decision, as well as practical considerations. Unlike when Alexander took over from Mark Hughes, Bradford will not need to define a new footballing DNA. The squad Duff inherits should be able to play how he wants.

There is mitigation for his difficult spell at Wycombe, where he had little influence over recruitment and ended up with a team that jarred with his preferred style of football. At Valley Parade he will – like his predecessor – have a huge say over comings and goings and there is a budget for January signings if Bradford are in the promotion mix (or things go south and they are battling for survival).

Last year they added £500,000 to the budget to supplement a promotion push that ended with a play-off defeat to Bolton and similar funds would be available this time.

It is not finalised yet but there’s hope it will be done on Tuesday. City had also spoken to Gary Rowett but the field of candidates was shrunk by the withdrawal of Paul Heckingbottom, who Alexander has replaced at Preston, and a few other potential candidates who didn’t fancy following such a successful manager.

Former Stockport boss Dave Challinor was never keen and appears to be waiting for a Championship job, Bradford-born Tom Cleverley is committed to the Plymouth project while Leam Richardson, another suggested, was not in the running.

Experience was viewed as essential so managerial novices, and there was plenty of interest, were quickly discounted. Bradford wanted a manager who felt he had something to prove – Duff is that man.

When will Duff take charge?

Bradford will have the new man in place before back-to-back home games against Leyton Orient and Stevenage and ensuring City continue to over-perform is top of the agenda. It’s understood the Bantams wage bill for this season is around the £7m mark, thought to be around 10th or 11th in a League One that also includes big spenders like Huddersfield and the likes of Leicester and Sheffield Wednesday.

For the third successive season that has been topped up by owner funding, with German Stefan Rupp continuing to back a club that is on much surer footing than their last spell in the third tier.

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Rupp’s investment this season is around £3m and he is much more regular visitor to Valley Parade these days, even if that sum tells its own story about the cost of being an EFL owner these days.

Another year of record commercial revenues (including a tie-up with a US bank) are a testament to investment in staffing and infrastructure over the past few years. The size of the crowds Bradford pull in – they have nearly 16,000 season-ticket holders – suggests they have potential to establish themselves in the Championship in the future.

They haven’t been there for more than two decades but Duff is inheriting a good group of players in a great position. His remit is taking the next step.

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