Jens Berthel Askou (born 19 August 1982) is a Danish professional football manager and former player. He is currently the manager of Ligue 1 club Toulouse.

Askou played for Danish clubs before moving abroad, first to Turkish club Kasımpaşa and then to Norwich City in England, before moving back to Denmark to play for Vejle Kolding and Esbjerg. After retiring, he moved into coaching and won a domestic double with HB Tórshavn in 2020 before managing clubs in Denmark, Sweden and Scotland, leading Motherwell to European qualification in his only season in charge prior to joining Toulouse in 2026.

Playing career Born in Videbæk, Askou began his career at Ikast FS before moving to Holstebro in 2002. His performances led to a contract with 1st Division Silkeborg in the summer of 2003, following a successful trial. He helped the club regain promotion to the Danish Superliga during his first season, and became a regular for four years. In 2007, Askou failed to agree a new deal with SIF, which led to a move to Turkish football with Kasımpaşa.

Kasımpaşa finished bottom of the 2007–08 Süper Lig, with Askou appearing frequently and scoring twice. However, despite Askou's own goal in the playoffs semi-final, the club returned to the top flight at the first attempt in 2008–09. His contract was not renewed the following summer.

Norwich City In July 2009, Askou linked up with English League One club Norwich City on their pre-season tour of Scotland. He impressed suitably with his defensive displays in the club's friendly matches, also managing to score with a header against Airdrie United. Then manager Bryan Gunn confirmed on 27 July he had offered Askou a contract. It was revealed on 30 July that Askou had signed a two-year deal with Norwich. He made his debut in a 4–0 win over Yeovil Town in the League Cup on 11 August, helping to keep a clean sheet. Four days later, he scored on his league debut as Norwich drew 1–1 with Exeter City. Askou became a regular starter for Norwich until picking up a metatarsal injury in a league game against Yeovil in December, which kept him out until May 2010.

He scored a header against Blackburn Rovers in the League Cup in August 2010; a game which Norwich lost 3–1. Askou's opportunities at Norwich were limited in the 2010–11 season, making only two Championship starts in the first half of the campaign.

In January 2011, Askou moved to fellow Championship side Millwall on a one-month loan. He was sent off on his debut against Leicester City for a two-footed lunge on Yakubu. This was his only appearance for the club and he returned to Norwich in February. He did not appear again for his parent club either and was released by the club at the end of the season after his contract expired.

Vejle-Kolding Askou signed a two-year contract with Danish first division team Vejle-Kolding in August 2011.Vejle henter forsvarsspiller i Norwich, Jyllans-Posten, 26 August 2011. Retrieved 26 August 2011.Dagens transferrygter: Golfkøllesvinger kan vende tilbage til Liverpool, Politiken, 26 August 2011. Retrieved 26 August 2011. During his time a Vejle, he scored six goals in 55 appearances and was appointed club captain in the summer of 2012.Askou ny anfører i VBK

Askou signed a two-year deal with Esbjerg in the Danish Superliga on 2 August 2013 for an undisclosed fee.Jens Berthel Askou til EfB på toårig aftale

Coaching career In 2015, Askou became playing assistant manager at Skive.Askou bliver spillende assistent i Skive, bold.dk, 26 December 2014 A year later, he took up the same position at Thisted.Jens Berthel Askou ny assistent i Thisted, bold.dk, 19 September 2016Jens Berthel Askou stopper i Thisted FC‚ bold.dk, 30 May 2017

In June 2017, Askou became Erik Rasmussen's assistant manager at Vendsyssel.Jens Berthel Askou fortsætter i Vendsyssel‚ bold.dk, 27 June 2017 On 8 May 2018, Rasmussen resigned as manager and was replaced by Askou. After an overall defeat against Horsens in the Danish Superliga relegation play off games, Askou and his staff was fired on 20 May 2019.Vendsyssel sparker trænerteam på porten, bold.dk, 20 May 2019

In October 2019, Askou signed with Denmark Series 4 amateur club TIF All Stars.Tidligere Vejle kaptajn skriver kontrakt med TIF All Stars., facebook.com, 8 October 2019 In the beginning of November 2019, it was confirmed that Askou would become the manager of HB Tórshavn in the Faroe Islands starting from 1 December 2019.Jens Berthel Askou skal træne på Færøerne, bold.dk, 2 November 2019 One year later, on 5 December 2020, he had won the double with HB Tórshavn by first winning the Faroe Islands Premier League and then the Faroe Islands Cup. He also won the honour as the best football manager 2020 in the Faroe Islands, chosen by the Venjarafelag Føroya (Faroese Association of Football Managers).

In January 2021, he left Tórshavn to become new manager of struggling Danish Superliga club Horsens. In June 2023, he left AC Horsens to become the new head coach of Swedish Allsvenskan club IFK Göteborg. In June 2024, Askou left IFK Göteborg to become an assistant coach of Czech First League club Sparta Prague. As a consequence of a disappointing fall for the club, Askou was fired on 3 January 2025 by the Czech club.Askou er færdig i Sparta Prag, bold.dk, 3 January 2025 In January 2025, Askou was hired as an assistant coach at Danish Superliga club Copenhagen under manager Jacob Neestrup, on a deal until the end of the season.F.C. København henter ny assistenttræner, fck.dk, 12 January 2025

Motherwell On 12 June 2025, Scottish Premiership club Motherwell announced the appointment of Askou, subject to a work permit, as their new manager. In his only season in charge, he led Motherwell to a fourth-place finish in the Scottish Premiership and qualification for European competition, while receiving praise for his attacking style of football.

Toulouse On 21 May 2026, Askou was appointed head coach of Ligue 1 club Toulouse ahead of the 2026–27 season, signing a three-year contract.

Personal life Askou is married to Rikke. The couple have three children, including current OB defender Julius.

Managerial statistics

+ Managerial record by team and tenureTeamNatFromToRecordVendsyssel8 May 201820 May 2019Tórshavn1 December 20194 January 2021Horsens4 January 20217 June 2023IFK Göteborg7 June 202315 June 2024Motherwell12 June 202521 May 2026Toulouse21 May 2026presentTotal—

Honours

Player Silkeborg Danish 1st Division: 2003–04

Kasımpaşa TFF 1. League Playoffs Winners: 2008–09

Norwich City League One: 2009–10 Championship runners-up: 2010–11

Manager Havnar Bóltfelag Faroe Islands Premier League: 2020 Faroe Islands Cup: 2020

Individual Faroe Islands Premier League Manager of the Year: 2020

References

External links

Jens Berthel Askou – Danish Superliga player statistics at danskfodbold.com

Jens Berthel Askou player profile at canaries.co.uk