Warne out of the running to replace Lindsey as MK Dons head coach

A key candidate appears to be out of contention for MK Dons’ top job.

Former Rotherham and Derby County boss Paul Warne is reported to have been in the running to replace Scott Lindsey at Stadium MK. But after a week of interviews with Dons owner Fahad Al Ghanim, Warne according to reports, rebuffed Dons’ approach for him to take the top job.

Warne oversaw four promotions in seven years while Rotherham manager as they yo-yoed between League One and the Championship. His side finished second on 2021/22, narrowly beating Dons to the final automatic promotion spot.

Sacked the following season, he took over at Derby County as they sought to find a way out of League One, something he achieved last season with the Rams. Labouring at the bottom end of the Championship table though, he was sacked in February.

He was understood to be a front-runner for the top job at Stadium MK, but is now believed to have turned the job down.

Another out of the running appears to be MK Dons legend Keith Andrews. The man who lifted the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy and the League Two crown in 2008 is currently the set-piece coach at Brentford, and is believed to have been in the running for the job, but is no longer in contention.

Ex-Huddersfield Town manager Michael Duff remains a name heavily linked with the position. Duff was sacked earlier this year by the Tykes in League One, after they slipped out of the play-off spots. He has previously led Cheltenham Town to promotion.

Interim head coach Ben Gladwin, speaking after MK Dons’ 1-0 defeat to Gillingham on Saturday, said he has been informed an appointment is set to be made this week.