Duncan Ferguson has left his coaching role at Everton to pursue managerial ambitions, the club have announced. Ferguson had served on the backroom staff to a succession of managers at Goodison Park and also had two spells as caretaker manager, the most recent being after Rafael Benítez was sacked last season. The 50-year-old reverted to assistant manager after the appointment of Frank Lampard in January. The former Scotland international previously took charge of Everton after the departure of Marco Silva in December 2019, filling in until the arrival of Carlo Ancelotti later that month. Ferguson’s decision to move on ends a long association with the Merseyside club dating back to his signing from Rangers in 1994. He went on to score 73 goals in 273 appearances across two spells. He returned to the club as an academy coach in 2011 and was promoted to a position with the first team three years later. “It’s been a massive decision for me, an incredibly difficult one but I need to move on, to take that next step in my career and look for that new challenge,” Ferguson told evertontv. “Being a caretaker manager has given me confidence to step into management.” Everton endured a difficult 2021-22 campaign but, after relegation was avoided in the final week of the season, Ferguson believes their future should be brighter. “This club is definitely heading in the right direction,” he said. “The team is in good hands with Frank as manager. He’s been first class and he wanted me to stay on. I can’t speak highly enough of Frank. He’s a great man and a great young manager, I’m sure he’ll do very well for Everton. “There’s also the new stadium on the horizon which is going to be unbelievable for the club.I’ll be there as a supporter. My kids have got season tickets and I’ll be looking forward to coming back.”