Lincoln have appointed Mark Kennedy as their new head coach on a four-year contract.

The 45-year-old, who had been assistant manager to Lee Bowyer at Birmingham, takes over from Michael Appleton, who stepped down following the Imps’ 2-1 win against Crewe on the final day of the season as they finished 17th in Sky Bet League One.

Kennedy played as a winger for Liverpool, Manchester City, Wolves and the Republic of Ireland and has previous managerial experience with Macclesfield in League Two, as well as coaching roles at City, Wolves, Ipswich and Blues.

Lincoln chairman Clive Nates told his club’s website: “Over the course of many hours of interviews, we have been hugely impressed by Mark’s knowledge, energy, drive and passion.

“We know that he is a highly-respected coach, and in the interview process he impressed us with his desire to improve and develop players while creating an aggressive, attacking style of play that we believe will be successful in League One and excite our fans at the LNER Stadium.

“We believe that Mark can flourish within our structure and help to create the culture and environment to maximise the potential of our squad.”