Steve Evans will bring Wembley hero Alex Revell back to Rotherham United if he can

The 40-year-old wrote his name in Millers folklore during his playing days a decade ago when he was a key man in the rise to the Championship and famously scored the ‘ambitious but brilliant’ wonder-goal in the League One Play-off Final at Wembley.

He and Evans worked together at Stevenage before the latter's return to Rotherham for a second spell in the hot-seat last week.

Evans, the man who led the Millers from League Two to the second tier in his first reign, will add the former striker to his coaching staff if such an appointment is possible.

Revell had a spell in charge at Stevenage and then coached there under Evans. He has been named interim boss at the Lamex Stadium and it remains to be seen whether he will be offered the job permanently for a second time.

Rotherham's new boss would love a New York reunion and so would Millers supporters.

“Does Alex one day want to return to management? Yes, he does,” Evans said. “Is he ready? That determination doesn't lie with me, it lies with Phil Wallace (Stevenage chairman) and the Stevenage board.

“Since I've left, I haven't spoken to Alex. When you leave a club, you must have the integrity to not communicate back to your old players and staff because they can get mixed messages.

“Would I see Alex Revell back on my staff at some time? If we had a position available and Alex was fancying it, absolutely.”

Revell's prodigious work rate endeared him to supporters during his three-and-half-year stay between 2011 and 2015 when he made 170 appearances and scored 34 goals before leaving for Cardiff City.

A photograph of his unforgettable 2014 play-off-final strike adorns the room at Stevenage that was occupied by him, Evans and number two Paul Raynor.

“He is the major reason why this club had its success,” Evans said. “He's adored by the people here and rightly so. Every day I say this: he scored the best-ever goal at Wembley. If people want to debate it, show me the other goals.

“The picture was in our office and he told me every day when we walked in: ‘Gaffer, look.’ I'd reply: ‘Yeah, but you tried to pass it across the pitch to James Tavernier who's a proper player!’”

Revell lost the manager's job at Stevenage in late 2021 and was working as a coach in the youth set-up when Evans arrived at the Lamex Stadium in early 2022.

“Alex was in a difficult position,” Evans said. “He'd been the manager for a short period and the chairman sacked him but kept him in the academy structure. When I met the chairman I made it clear I wanted to bring Alex back in.

“Would he be an asset working for me here? He's already been an asset for the last two years.”