Damien Duff

Where is Damien Duff now?

The bane of many a right-back during his time in the Premier League, Damien Duff retired from playing in 2016 at the age of 37 after a spell back in his native Ireland with Shamrock Rovers.

He enjoyed a 19-year playing career and won a number of trophies including two Premier League titles and a League Cup with Chelsea, the League Cup with Blackburn Rovers, the Intertoto Cup with Newcastle United and he was also part of the Fulham side which were unlucky to lose to Atletico Madrid in the 2010 UEFA Europa League final.

Duff was also an integral member of the Republic of Ireland squad for 14 years between 1998 and 2012 winning 100 caps and featuring in the 2002 FIFA World Cup finals and 2012 UEFA European Championships.

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Upon retiring from playing Duff has spent time working as a pundit and match analyst on Irish television station RTE although at first he admitted that he was completely out of his comfort zone.

Keen to get into coaching he spent time with the Shamrock Rovers under-15’s side and was hired by the Football Association of Ireland to work within their Emerging Talent Programme.along with other former Irish stars Kenny Cunningham, Mark Kinsella, Keith Andrews and Stephen McPhail.

In August 2016, he joined the coaching staff of the Shamrock Rovers first-team working predominantly with the team’s strikers and was also appointed as head coach of their under-15’s academy side six months later combining his duties with his existing first team coaching role.

A huge Celtic fan as a child, Duff got his dream role in January 2019 when he joined Brendan Rodgers’ Scottish giants as a reserve team coach having previously worked with him during his time as a player at Chelsea. After Rodgers unexpectedly left to join Premier League side Leicester City just a month after Duff had joined, new manager Neil Lennon promoted him to first team coach.

He left The Bhoys at the end of the 2019-20 season to join the Republic of Ireland international setup as an assistant coach and joined Irish side Shelbourne in a dual-role as head coach of their under-17’s side a week later.

Duff resigned from his international duties at the start of 2021 for reasons unknown but continued his coaching role at Shelbourne. He was named head coach of their first-team in November 2021 in his first managerial role.

Back to Blackburn Rovers / Chelsea / Fulham / Newcastle United



#One2Eleven (4-3-3 Formation)

Damien Duff was a guest on Sky Sports programme The Fantasy Football Club in May 2017 where he picked the eleven best players he had ever played with in their #One2Eleven section of the show.

Damien Duff One2Eleven

GK – Mark Schwarzer – I have worked with some of the best keepers in my career in Shay Given, Petr Cech and Carlo Cudicini but I have to go with Schwarzer as he is the hardest working player I have ever seen. He is also a top guy and shown great longevity playing into his 40’s.

RB – Denis Irwin – cool as ice and a player who I don’t think I ever got the better of. Scored lots of goals and won everything in his career too.

LB – Ian Harte – I used to love playing with Harte, he was so good at picking you out. He also had the best left foot I had ever seen in football.

CB – John Terry – not the quickest but reads the game tremendously well. People often underestimate how good he is on the ball and with both feet. A captain on and off the pitch

CB – Richard Dunne – Another player who was underestimated. Every meeting we had before a game every manager would pick him out saying he can’t run, can’t move and can’t turn. He was very good, old school, and possibly the quickest centre half I’ve seen.

CM – Roy Keane – Keane was a player who believed that sometimes the best pass is the easiest pass and he was the best I’d ever seen at that. He is a very funny man with a very dry wit which people don’t often see. An incredible player though.

CM – Frank Lampard – fantastic in training, always doing an extra 5-10 minutes afterwards which adds up to a lot over a career. I don’t think you can coach the way he used to time his runs into the box. A top lad as well who enjoyed a pint.

CM – Mousa Dembele – so strong and so quick and one of the best at standing someone up and beating them. He has an amazing technique with the ball.

RW – Arjan Robben – his confidence was bordering on arrogance but a top guy who was the catalyst of the Chelsea team which broke the points record.

LW – David Villa – I played with him for two months in New York and I have seen no one better at cutting in from the left than Villa.

Striker – Robbie Keane – I played against him when he was 16 and he was doing things that seasoned pros did. So clever round the box and he had that fearlessness which he taught himself from playing on the street. Not the quickest or strongest but had a great football team.


Damien Duff: Premier League Statistics

NationalityIrish
PositionWinger
Appearances392
Goals54
Yellow Cards26
Red Cards0
Premier League Teams Played forBlackburn Rovers, Chelsea, Fulham, Newcastle United

Statistics courtesy of www.premierleague.com

Last Updated on 2 December 2022 by Admin