Crawley Town dismiss head coach Colin Kazim‑Richards
Crawley Town have relieved Colin Kazim‑Richards of his duties as head coach after a 3‑2 defeat to Shrewsbury Town at the Broadfield Stadium on Tuesday. The loss left the Red Devils five points adrift of safety at the foot of League Two and marked their seventh defeat in ten league matches, a campaign in which they have managed only a single victory.
Alongside Kazim‑Richards, assistant manager Julian Gray was also dismissed, and director of football Erdem Konyar will depart the club. In a statement the club said: “The club would like to place on record its sincere thanks to Colin and Julian, who joined during a challenging period and played an important role in securing the club’s EFL status at the end of last season. We would also like to thank Erdem for his hard work and commitment since returning to the club last year. All three depart with the best wishes of everyone at Crawley Town, and we wish them every success in their future endeavours.”
Kazim‑Richards, a former Turkey international who enjoyed an 18‑year playing career before taking his first managerial role at Crawley, was appointed in March 2024. He steered the side to survival last season, guiding them to safety by two wins and three draws in their final seven games, finishing just one point above the relegation zone.
This season, however, has been far tougher. The team’s start is the poorest since their promotion to the English Football League in 2011, and they have already conceded 20 goals in ten league fixtures. Over the summer, the club saw 16 players arrive on permanent deals or loans while another 16 left, a turnover Kazim‑Richards described as a “scattergun approach”.
When asked by BBC Radio Surrey if he could reverse the club’s fortunes, Kazim‑Richards replied: “I feel I can. If I’m given the time is another question. It’s not a question I can answer for you. I think we need a little bit more experience, a little bit in terms of game management and things like that. But we’ll see what happens, right?”
He also noted that nine players have made their league debuts under his tenure, stressing that while experience must be earned on the pitch, “certain areas they need help in and players need other players to be able to give them that nous, that experience, while they’re playing with them as well.” He added that he believes he could still extract the best from the squad despite the challenges.
BBC Radio Surrey sports editor Robin Grey said the dismissal was “inevitable” given the club’s historically poor start. “Colin Kazim‑Richards achieved his goal of keeping the club up in difficult circumstances at the end of last season. But this summer’s recruitment felt a scattergun approach, with nine senior debuts handed so far – that stat alone shows this squad lacks experience. The departure of Erdem Konyar as director of football shows there is clearly recognition from owner Raphael Khalili that the recruitment hasn’t been good enough. He took a gamble on the inexperienced Kazim‑Richards, now he must go for someone with league experience.”