David John Artell (born 22 November 1980) is a football manager and former professional player who is head coach of EFL League Two club Grimsby Town.

Artell began his career with hometown club Rotherham United,[1] making his debut as a substitute in a 2–0 defeat by Swansea City at Vetch Field on 12 October 1999 – this was his only appearance as the "Millers" won promotion as runners-up in the Third Division.

He played 23 games of the 2004–05 season but had surgery and was then frozen out of the first-team picture after manager Keith Curle was replaced by Carlton Palmer in November.

[9] In only his second competitive game for the club, he achieved hero status by scoring a late winner in a shock League Cup 2–1 success over Preston North End at Deepdale.

After losing his first-team place, manager Sammy McIlroy told Artell he could leave the club on loan in November 2008.

In the play-off semi-final second leg against Dagenham & Redbridge he scored the final goal ever at Christie Park, in what was a 2–1 win; however, Morecambe lost the tie 7–2 on aggregate.

[20] Artell was nominated for the League Two Player of the Month award in March 2012,[21] but lost out to Torquay United's Lee Mansell.

[28] Two days later he signed a two-year deal with Northampton Town; manager Aidy Boothroyd said that "he's the coagulant that will connect the other bits and pieces.

"[29] He got off to the perfect start to his "Cobblers" career, scoring the equalizing goal in a 2–1 League Cup win over Championship side Cardiff City.

In January 2016, Artell left Bala for fellow Welsh Premier League side Port Talbot Town.

He signed with Northern Premier League club Kidsgrove Athletic in June 2016,[44] and scored two goals in cup competitions for the "Grove".

[48] The Football League Paper described Artell as "an archetypal lower-league stopper", and former manager Jim Bentley said that "he was committed, he was aggressive, he was brave".

"[54] Crewe promptly won four of their next five games in March to move towards mid-table safety,[55] a team performance that helped earn Artell a nomination for EFL League Two Manager of the Month.

[61] On 20 February, Crewe lost 2–1 at home to Exeter City despite taking the lead on 88 minutes; Artell again criticised his player's professionalism and said: "That sums us up.

[63] On 5 May 2018, Artell selected a starting 11 who were all Crewe Academy graduates against Cheltenham Town and was picked as EFL manager of the week after his team won 2–1.

Artell was then nominated for the EFL League Two Manager of the Month award after they climbed the table with ten points from five games, including a 1–0 win at promotion-chasing Milton Keynes Dons.

[70] Hoping to improve on a 12th-place finish, Artell released four players, while centre-back George Ray rejected the club's contract offer.

Clubs voted to end the campaign without playing the remaining fixtures, and although Crewe were promoted, Swindon Town won the league title with a higher points per game.

In 2020–21, Crewe Alexandra underwent a difficult period off the pitch following publication of the Sheldon report into a sexual abuse scandal relating to multiple offender and former youth team coach Barry Bennell.

[77] Artell kept the club performing well on the pitch, signing five new players on free transfers – Offrande Zanzala, Mikael Mandron, Donervon Daniels, Omar Beckles and Luke Murphy – and cashing in on Perry Ng and Harry Pickering.

[79] During the summer of 2021, midfielders Charlie Kirk and Ryan Wintle left; Owen Dale was keen to move and eventually went on loan,[80] and Tom Lowery became involved in a protracted contract dispute.

Crewe won just one of their first 15 league games and were bottom of the table on 2 November, six points from safety after a draw against fellow strugglers Doncaster Rovers.

[84] However, Crewe continued to struggle, losing seven consecutive games in early 2022 before Artell's 100th victory as manager, a 2–1 win at Cheltenham Town, briefly raised his hopes of an unlikely escape from relegation.

[86] In "one of the worst" seasons in Crewe's modern history, the club was relegated with four games still to play after a 2–0 defeat at Doncaster on 9 April 2022.

[88] Artell subsequently said he was "unquestionably proud" to be "the only person who has achieved promotion as both a player and manager at Crewe," though it ultimately proved exhausting.