June 10 (Reuters) - Kieran McKenna will leave his role as Ipswich Town manager after five seasons, the club said on Wednesday, with the 40-year-old departing a month after securing promotion to the Premier League.
The club said McKenna had decided to take a break, despite guiding Ipswich back to the top flight with a second-place Championship finish in May.
“To manage this club has been an absolute privilege," McKenna said in a statement.
"Over the last five seasons we have been on an incredible journey that has brought so many of the best experiences in my professional and personal life."
McKenna oversaw one of the most successful periods in the club’s history, leading Ipswich to three promotions in four years, including two promotions to the Premier League during his tenure.
“When you have the connection that we have built at this club there is never a good time to say goodbye," he said.
“However, having achieved a second promotion to the Premier League last season, with another memorable final day in our stadium, and after reflection over the last couple of weeks, I feel this is the right time for me to step aside.
"I do so with great pride at the incredible progress we have made and with huge hope and optimism for the future of the club.”
McKenna worked as a youth coach at Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United before taking a first-team coaching role at United under Michael Carrick and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
He took charge of Ipswich in December 2021 when the club were in League One, and secured promotion in his first full season in 2022-23. He followed that by guiding them to a second-place finish in the Championship a year later, returning Ipswich to the Premier League for the first time since 2001.
(Reporting by Karan Prashant Saxena in Bengaluru; editing by Clare Fallon)
