23: Liam Bridcutt
Still one of the best players I’ve ever seen in a City shirt, Bridcutt remained at the Bank through to the end of the 2021-22 season and was offered a new contract before his departure was confirmed in June 2022, ending a two-and-a-half-year spell. Later that year, he reunited with former Lincoln manager Michael Appleton by signing for Blackpool on a one-year deal with the option of an additional season.
His time at Bloomfield Road lasted a single campaign and Blackpool released him in May 2023 following their relegation from the Championship. After retiring from professional football in February 2024, Bridcutt moved into coaching, initially taking up a sessional role within Newcastle United’s academy setup before joining Carl Magnay’s coaching staff at National League side Gateshead in October 2024.
27: Morgan Rogers
Rogers’ performances during his loan spell with Lincoln City earned him the League One Young Player of the Month award for March 2021 after scoring three times in seven games. He returned to Manchester City that summer and spent the 2021-22 season on loan with Bournemouth, helping the Cherries win promotion to the Premier League, although most of his appearances came from the bench. A further loan followed with Blackpool during the second half of the 2022-23 campaign before Middlesbrough signed him permanently in July 2023.
His rise accelerated quickly after joining Boro. He became the top scorer in the EFL Cup during Middlesbrough’s run to the semi-finals before Aston Villa signed him in February 2024 in a deal worth up to £15 million. Rogers went on to establish himself as a key player at Villa Park, scoring a Champions League hat-trick against Celtic in January 2025 and finishing the 2024-25 season with 14 goals and 15 assists in all competitions. His form earned him Aston Villa’s Young Player of the Season award, the PFA Young Player of the Year prize and a first senior England call-up, with Rogers scoring his first international goal against Wales in October 2025.
9: Tom Hopper
Hopper stayed with the Imps following the 2020-21 play-off campaign and was named club captain ahead of the 2022-23 season after the departure of Liam Bridcutt. However, his time at Sincil Bank came to an end midway through that campaign when he joined Colchester United in January 2023 for an undisclosed fee. He scored his first goal for the U’s a few weeks later, heading home the winner in a 1-0 victory away at Grimsby Town.
Hopper spent two years with Colchester before his contract was cancelled by mutual consent in January 2025. On the same day, he returned to former club Southend United in the National League on an 18-month deal. His return to Roots Hall proved successful, helping the Shrimpers win the FA Trophy this weekend.
Manager: Michael Appleton
Appleton signed a new four-year contract with the Imps in February 2021, but his spell at Sincil Bank came to an end in April 2022 following the final game of the disappointing 2021-22 season. Two months later, he returned to Blackpool for a second spell as head coach, signing a deal running until 2026 after replacing Neil Critchley. However, his time back at Bloomfield Road lasted only seven months, and he was sacked in January 2023 with the club in the Championship relegation zone after one win in 11 matches.
In September 2023, Appleton returned to League One with Charlton Athletic on a two-year contract, although that spell also proved short-lived. He was dismissed in January 2024 after a run of ten league games without a win. After more than a year out of management, he returned in March 2025 as interim head coach of Shrewsbury Town with the club deep in relegation trouble. Despite being unable to prevent relegation to League Two, he was handed a permanent two-year contract that summer, but was sacked in January 2026 following a poor run of form that left Shrewsbury hovering just above the relegation places.
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