CHRIS Hogg believes the fact that he and Liam Manning can challenge each other will be beneficial to Oxford United.

Manning was announced as U’s head coach on March 11, with Hogg his assistant manager.

The duo held the same roles at MK Dons, prior to them both leaving the club earlier this season.

Manning and Hogg met during their time in the youth team at Ipswich Town, before reconnecting years down the line at MK Dons.

Hogg said: “We’ve got a really good working relationship in terms of knowing each other’s strengths and weaknesses, where we can help each other and where we bounce off each other.

“We’ve got a personal relationship going back 20 years from our days at Ipswich together.

“One thing for sure is we’re really well aligned in how we see football and development.”

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During his first press conference as United boss, Manning outlined the importance of his number two, due to the fact he is comfortable with challenging him.

Manning said: “It was pretty much a non-negotiable for me on that front.

“He knows me inside out, he knows how to read my emotion and he’s a terrific coach himself.

“It was a non-negotiable for me that he came with me.

“In terms of his knowledge of the game and eye for detail, he knows how I want the game to be played.

“The big thing is he’ll challenge me as well, he won’t just be around me saying yes to everything.

“He’ll throw curveballs at me and challenge me on the decisions that I make.

“It’s really important that I have a relationship with him and the other staff as well, where we want the same goal and work towards the same thing.”

On those comments, Hogg said he and Manning being able to question each other is a positive for themselves and the team.

He said: “I think that’s the beauty of me and the manager, we both know we can challenge each other and it’s never personal.

“Ultimately it’s for the team and we’ve got to put the team first.

“We’ve got a really good relationship.”

After retiring from a playing career which included spells in Scotland with Hibernian and Inverness Caledonian Thistle, Hogg rejoined Ipswich to coach in the club’s academy system.

He left the Tractor Boys for a similar position at Newcastle United, however the lure of working with Manning at MK Dons brought the two back together again.

Hogg said: “I’ve said this numerous times in the past, I was really enjoying my time up at Newcastle.

“It’s a club I fell in love with in a way, so I would never have left Newcastle for anybody else.

“The manager rang me and it was one of them things where I didn’t want to leave but I left purely because I knew what I was coming into with him.”