Steve Coppell

Newly promoted Reading have a man leading them who has seen a lot of clubs come and go from the top flight.

Not that it is any indication of poor management on his part, Steve Coppell knows what it feels like to be relegated and will hope that his Premiership new boys do not put him through the same scenario again this season.

After a record breaking season in the Championship, the Royals have the feeling of success, and the manager knows how important it is to ride on the crest of a wave if the team are to avoid relegation this year.

Coppell began his professional career at the Wirral based outfit Tranmere Rovers in 1974. Quickly establishing himself as a quick and talented winger, he scored 10 goals in 38 appearances for Tranmere.

Spending just under 2 years at Prenton Park, soon his performances were attracting the attention of Manchester United, and Coppell's life would change forever once the Red Devils made an offer of £60,000 for him in 1975.

He made his debut at Old Trafford in March 1975 in a 4-0 win over Cardiff as United stormed back into the First Division after just one season in the Second.

Coppell was able to study for his degree as well as charging up and down the wing for United, and he added an FA Cup winners medal to his ever-increasing CV in 1977.

Coppell also notched up 42 caps for the full-England squad before injury struck while playing for England in the vital qualifier for the 1982 FIFA World Cup against Hungary.

Suffering a vicious high challenge, Coppell's knee was shattered and he underwent an operation to ensure he could continue playing.

However, by 1983, Coppell's knee could no longer stand the rigors of professional football and after many operations he announced his retirement from the game- aged just 28.

He had broken the record for the most consecutive appearances for an outfield Manchester United player - 207 from 1977 to 1981 - which still stands to this day and boasted an impressive 373 appearances and 70 goals during his time at Old Trafford.

After injury cut his playing career short, Coppell moved into management with Crystal Palace in 1984.

At 29 years of age, he was the youngest manager in the Football League and made many budget signings of unwanted players from the First Division, as well as snapping up Ian Wright from the depths of non-league football.

Greatly improving the team's fortunes, Coppell guided the Eagles back to the top flight in 1989 after the South London club had dropped into the second tier under Alan Mullery.

Palace stayed in the top flight for four seasons, and also reached the FA Cup Final in 1990, losing out to Coppell's old club Manchester United in a replay.

Despite that disappointment Coppell was able to bring the club their first major trophy in the following season, the Zenith Data Systems Cup. However, the club's fortunes declined after that, and in 1993 Coppell resigned after they were relegated from the Premier League.

Not one to stay out of the game for long, Coppell then returned to Crystal Palace in 1995 as Director of Football.

In 1996-97, a departure from his otherwise London-based managerial career came when he took the role of manager of Manchester City. Coppell became City's third manager of that season, in which five men took charge of the team in one capacity or another. His short tenure ended in resignation and he returned to Crystal Palace early in the 1997/98 season.

However, a boardroom takeover and relegation saw Coppell leave the Palace hot seat, only to be re-instated again in 1999 for his fourth tenure.

That too was doomed to failure after new Chairman Simon Jordan became the owner of Crystal Palace in mid-2000 and replaced Coppell with Alan Smith for a second stint in the early part of the season.

Coppell was appointed manager of Brentford in 2001 by the former Palace owner Ron Noades, and he took them to the Division Two play-off final in 2002 after they had narrowly missed out on automatic promotion.

Yet Coppell resigned in June 2002, after 13 months in the position citing the lack of finances as the main reason for his decision.

After a brief spell at Swindon, the former United man was then courted by Brighton & Hove Albion after the departure of Peter Taylor.

Despite a lengthy interview with Seagulls chairman Dick Knight that summer, Coppell was not given the job as Albion chose to promote from within and give Martin Hinshelwood his first chance as a manager.

However, twelve games into the season Coppell received a call from Knight and was offered the managerial post, which he duly accepted, signing a one-year deal with the club in October 2002.

With Brighton cast adrift at the bottom of Division One after a ten-game losing streak, Coppell faced what seemed an impossible task in what would prove to be an arduous battle against relegation.

It was a fight that they took all the way to the final game of the season, but were unable to salvage their status and dropped to Division Two. Although, despite their relegation Coppell agreed to another one-year deal to stay with the club in the summer of 2003.

Brighton certainly made a promising start to the 2003/04 season, and were at the top of Division Two when Coppell left the club to become the new manager of Reading following the departure of Alan Pardew.

Although The Royals initially approached Peter Taylor to discuss the vacant position at the Madejski Stadium, the ex-England under-21 coach chose to remain with Hull, and Brighton chairman Dick Knight gave the First Division club permission to talk to Coppell.

His first season in charge was somewhat hampered by the season's transfer budget already having been spent by his predecessor, yet Reading still finished 7th.

In the 2005-06 season, Reading dominated the Championship, going on a run of 33 league games unbeaten from the opening day of the season, when they lost at home to Plymouth Argyle, until the middle of February, when they were finally beaten at Luton Town.

They clinched promotion to the top flight for the first time in their 135-year history thanks to a 1-1 draw away to Leicester City in March 2006.

Following such an outstanding season in charge of Reading, Coppell was voted League Managers Association's Manager of the Year for both the Championship and overall, and in June he was presented with an award for topping the Tissot League For Managers' Performance.

All those associated with the Madejski will be hoping that Coppell fills his trophy cupboard with more awards and not relegation sympathy cards this year around.