Todd Cantwell took his first step into management for Norwich City on Monday, albeit on the virtual computer game Fifa.
The 22-year-old is the Canaries representative as they look to become winners of the inaugural Fifa QuaranTeam tournament devised by League Two side Leyton Orient.
Cantwell overcame Fleetwood Town 2-1 in the opening round of the 128-team competition, with teams from Australia and Europe also participating in the competition.
The virtual tournament is to help raise money for charitable causes, with 75pc of the money donated being given to EFL clubs as they continue to battle with cash flow problems due to the coronavirus suspension.
MIND, a mental health charity and the World Health Organisation’s COVID-19 response fundraiser are seeing 25pc of the cash distributed between them.
Over 2000 people consumed Cantwell beating the Cod Army’s player, with Ondrej Duda and Teemu Pukki scoring either side of Barrie McKay’s leveller.
Speaking exclusively after the victory, Cantwell admitted to experiencing a few pre-match nerves.
“I was a bit nervous but it was enjoyable. It’s a good distraction for people, isn’t it?
“I started the game pretty well. I was defensively solid for the majority of the game, I’d say. To be fair, I probably tried to press a little hard to chase the second goal but overall it was a very solid performance and a deserved win.
“At the end, the game management was what separated me from the rest.”
Cantwell has pushed City into the final 64 of the competition, but any prospect of the virtual East Anglian Derby was destroyed after Ipswich Town were beaten 4-3 by Melbourne Victory, despite leading 3-1 in the second half of their replay.
City will be in the draw for the next round and Cantwell is prepared for whoever he faces in the next round.
“It’s a very open tournament. I don’t even know who’s in it to be fair. I’ll just take the next challenge as it comes.”
Cantwell is priced as a 150-1 outsider for the trophy, something he profusely disagrees with: “I think they should be lower after that!”
City will face Stevenage at Carrow Road in the second round.
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