Who are the best managers in the world?

billybee99

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Klopp just edge Pochettino for number 1, but Pochettino is an unknown because he hasn’t been given the opportunity to spend big money like the supposedly world top two managers in Pep and Klopp. Give Pochettino a warchest and he will become number 1 manager similar to the way Klopp became number 1.

4. Conte
5. Simione
6. Rodgers
7. Bielsa
8. Nagelsman
9. Zidane
10. Mourinho
Ok I like Poch as much as the next guy but this is borderline insane. And I might remind you that Klopp was close to number 1 before he even arrived at Anfield and spent this "warchest."
 

JDoe

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The last decade as in past 2 months?

How does Klopp rank above Zidane, based on the past 10 years?
Zidane had access to one of the best squads ever in world football, Klopp never had and never will most probably. For what it's worth, I thought we (Bayern) were at least on par with Real under Heynckes when we faced them and could easily have progressed with a bit more luck.

This is pretty much all very subjective though and a matter of preference and situational, I think. As someone has already said, I'd also prefer alot of managers to Pep when fighting against relegation, doesn't mean that I'd see them as better managers.
 

Dante

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Klopp has been the best manager in the league so far. But I reckon that Brendan Rogers and Chris Wilder have been 2nd and 3rd. All three are ahead of Pep on the evidence of this season alone.
 

billybee99

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Rijkaard who is a CL winning manager had the same players plus a few more and got nowhere close to achieving what Pep did at Barca. City coaches have had blank checques for a decade and didn't achieve what he has. The only club this statement is true is at Bayern.
Well he won 2 La Ligas and a CL so I wouldn't say that's chopped liver. He also didn't have a prime Messi; he had the teenage version (although a prime Ronnie isn't a bad alternative). As for City managers having blank checks for a decade and not achieving what Pep has, actually the previous managers pretty much have achieved what he has unless your counting points totals as trophies. He hasn't won anything that the previous 2 managers haven't. He was brought in to win the CL and he has failed; if they wanted to continue winning domestic trophies, they could have continued with Pelligrini or Manchini and not missed a beat.
 

adexkola

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Zidane had access to one of the best squads ever in world football, Klopp never had and never will most probably. For what it's worth, I thought we (Bayern) were at least on par with Real under Heynckes when we faced them and could easily have progressed with a bit more luck.

This is pretty much all very subjective though and a matter of preference and situational, I think. As someone has already said, I'd also prefer alot of managers to Pep when fighting against relegation, doesn't mean that I'd see them as better managers.
He still overachieved... how many managers have won 3 CLs back to back, with squads just as talented?
 

billybee99

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Huh? Klopp has the best CB in the world, two of the best full backs, three of the best forwards. I’m still undecided on Allison but he’s absolutely top 5. He’s got 5 £100m+ players and the most valuable fullbacks in the world.

He has far more world class players than Pep right now.

ALL top managers and teams can manage single player losses.
Huh, they weren't £100m when he bought them. That's the difference between the two, Pep needs to spend a billion whereas Klopp turns them into that. Sane, Salah, Firmino, TAA, Robertson - these were not £100m players.
 

billybee99

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Huh? Klopp has the best CB in the world, two of the best full backs, three of the best forwards. I’m still undecided on Allison but he’s absolutely top 5. He’s got 5 £100m+ players and the most valuable fullbacks in the world.

He has far more world class players than Pep right now.

ALL top managers and teams can manage single player losses.
VVD is the only one of these 6 that he spent big on. The fullbacks were unknown. Salah was a Premier League reject. Sane was a very good Premier League player who was there for the taking for any top club that wanted him including us but Klopp is the one who stepped up. Firmino was probably unknown to 75% of the posters on this forum myself included.
 

Infordin

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A manager I know nothing about, and I heard being raved about on here - is in South America (Argentina I think). Cannot recall the name, but a few wanted him to take over at Barca. Maybe someone can shed some light on him?
Marcelo Gallardo, River Plate manager.

Won the Copa Libertadores last season, narrowly lost the final this season.
 

billybee99

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I
1. Ole
2. Gunnar
3. Solskjaer

:devil:
Understand that your kidding here but it would be interesting to see where Ole would rank. I don't think any neutral would have him anywhere near the top 100 yet the Ole-in crowd would argue that there's no one in the world who could replace him and do a better job. It's staggering to me that a club of our stature doesn't have a manager who's one of top 100 in the world; it's negligence. People in this thread have given list after list after list of fantastic managers, many of whom are available (Poch, Allegri) or were available (Conte, Zidane) or are at small clubs and could become available to a club of our stature and wealth (Rodgers, Nagelsmann) yet we persist with a manager who, forget about the top managers in the world, would have a hard time cracking a list of the top 20 managers in England.
 

adz_87

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Peps star fading. I've actually heard it all.
 

RedRonaldo

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1. Klopp - by quite a margin. what he did for Liverpool and previously for Dortmund, is simply amazing. I mean, who else could turn Liverpool into the strongest force in Europe? and unbeatable in league this season too?

2. Guardiola - most successful manager in recent decade, with most entertaining brand of football. When everything clicks, his team plays the best football we've ever seen, and winning everything on sight too. But he is fading bit in recent year, otherwise should have been no.1.

3. Zidane - won 3 CL back to back, in his first 3 years of management. No one will ever come close breaking this record for long long time. Yes he couldn't save Real from big mess half way through the season last season, that's the only period he is not winning, a very short one. But this season he leads Real back to top in Spain again. Impressive.

4. Conte - Seems successful wherever he go, Juventus, Chelsea and now Inter, who suddenly becomes title challenger out of nowhere under him too.

5. Allegri - his football is abit boring but he always makes his team win. No one can deny his record at Juventus.

Sorry Mourinho, you were the 2nd most successful manager in the world over past decade. But what you've done in recent years (3rd year in Real, 3rd year in Chelsea, 3rd year at Man Utd), is complete shambles. No great manager would fall that far in similar fashion as yours.
 

Focusmate

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I think the original argument was about if Pep would have gotten you on a competitive (not necessarily dominant) state instead of the current one you are in and I'm pretty sure that given the resources since Mou was appointed, he'd most likely have. You've spent a lot of money and Pep is probably one of the safest bet there is in that case. He'd not have you on current City's level, who invested even more on an already very good squad, but probably a safe top 4 club I'd like to think.
Maybe so but remember its not just about spend. Would Pep have control of buys and sells at United?
Say he wants to get rid of DeGea for a ball playing keeper? Ed says no
Or he wants to sell Martial? Ed and Glazers say no.
Managers have only partial control at United. We bought Lukaku and then wouldnt buy a winger which is essential for Lukaku to play ( obviously Pep wouldnt play that way but just an example)
Need a DOF whoever comes in
 

UnrelatedPsuedo

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Huh, they weren't £100m when he bought them. That's the difference between the two, Pep needs to spend a billion whereas Klopp turns them into that. Sane, Salah, Firmino, TAA, Robertson - these were not £100m players.
But... they are now.

Full credit to him for improving players and maximising their potential, but they’re now £100m players and playing/winning accordingly.

TAA and Robertson are truly huge victories but he still paid decent cash for everyone else.

He has a great set of world class players and has them playing to their potential. But that set of players should be challenging for major honours. That doesn’t diminish his achievement.
 

UnrelatedPsuedo

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VVD is the only one of these 6 that he spent big on. The fullbacks were unknown. Salah was a Premier League reject. Sane was a very good Premier League player who was there for the taking for any top club that wanted him including us but Klopp is the one who stepped up. Firmino was probably unknown to 75% of the posters on this forum myself included.
His front three cost market value. They’re now super valuable, which we should praise him for.

But when he has half a team of players that would walk into most sides in football, we can’t pretend he’s making this happen with average players.

Liverpool’s recruitment has been fantastic. They have a world class team. But we can’t even try to suggest he’s romping away with the league with lesser players.

It’s ok to give bags of credit where it’s due, I always try to.
 

Amar__

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Wenger went years without winning anything though where it’s a rare feat if Pep goes a year without a trophy.
Pretty sure Wenger would win titles with this City team too. Whether he would be good as Pep or not, I am not sire though. But he would win trophies in the same situation.
 

alexthelion

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At the top: Klopp, Guardiola, Conte. Allegri maybe.

Up and coming: Nagelsmann, Rose, Ten Hag, Tuchel,
 

footballistic orgasm

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Why do a lot of you keep saying that Pep needs the best players in the world in every position to succeed, And also using this City team as an example of how he only takes over super teams? How many City players were top 5 in their positions before he started coaching them?

Also, why are some of you acting like Klopp is winning with just average players? He didn't start winning anything with this Liverpool team until he bought the most expensive defender and GK, also brought in (and not cheap) Fabinho, Chamberlain and Keita to add to tried and tested players like Salah and Mané...
 

Infordin

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Argh yeah, that’s him. Know much about him?
He’s already considered a legend in Argentina despite only being in his 44.

Barca were linked to him for most of 2019. Argentinians desperately want him to take over the Argentina NT ahead of the 2022 World Cup.

That’s all I know about him.
 

fps

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It’s absolutely not.

The one question mark over his head is his ability to grow a team across 5-8 years.

He’s quite clearly one of the greatest ever to work towards a 1-3 year peak. (Think of how differently he’d be viewed with a couple of servings of luck to see Bayern win a CL). But that constant evolution of a side has never happened at a club he’s managed.
Surely the big question mark is his ability to win the European cup without Messi in his team?
 

Hound Dog

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Why do a lot of you keep saying that Pep needs the best players in the world in every position to succeed,
Pretty sure Wenger would win titles with this City team too. Whether he would be good as Pep or not, I am not sire though. But he would win trophies in the same situation.
...
Not just Wenger, a lot of managers would.

They would not get 100 points, sure, but two titles in four years with this City squad is hardly a monumental achievement.

Looking further back, 2 in 4 with City and 3/3 with Bayern without even reaching a CL final is hardly a monumental achievement.

Why Pep constantly makes these lists while Zidane is mostly overlooked is beyond me.

Yes, Zidane had a class team, but what about Pep? Two of the three clubs he managed so far win their domestic leagues by default.

Regarding the thread subject, I think Klopp is rather isolated at the top at the moment. I struggle to recall any truly impressive managerial achievements by anyone else in the last five years or so. It was mostly a case of teams performing in line with the quality of their players, no major overachievements.

Gasperini deserves a mention, though, Atalanta have been overperforming for years and are incredible to watch.
 

adexkola

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Surely the big question mark is his ability to win the European cup without Messi in his team?
Seems to be a question mark not considered by anyone important (club owners/management), honestly. The same way no one at Liverpool asked the idiotic question asked so reverently on here of "whether Klopp had it in him to not be a finals bottler"
 

Ish

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He’s already considered a legend in Argentina despite only being in his 44.

Barca were linked to him for most of 2019. Argentinians desperately want him to take over the Argentina NT ahead of the 2022 World Cup.

That’s all I know about him.
Thanks for the info man. Appreciate it.
 

Chip Butty

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Bar the usual suspects, the 'one to watch' for me who could break into the usual names bandied about would be Nuno Espírito Santo at Wolves, strikes me as someone who at 46, will be a catch for any club in the coming few years.
 

spiriticon

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Huh? Klopp has the best CB in the world, two of the best full backs, three of the best forwards. I’m still undecided on Allison but he’s absolutely top 5. He’s got 5 £100m+ players and the most valuable fullbacks in the world.

He has far more world class players than Pep right now.

ALL top managers and teams can manage single player losses.
Yeah there's no doubt he's got a lot of class players (most of which he made tbh), but my point is you could take any of his stars (Salah, Mane or Firmino) out and stick in ok players like Lallana/Shaqiri/Origi there's very little drop off in performance overall.

You take Aguero out of City and there's a big drop in goalscoring, take De Bruyne out and there's clear drop in creativity.
 

JPRouve

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Yeah there's no doubt he's got a lot of class players (most of which he made tbh), but my point is you could take any of his stars (Salah, Mane or Firmino) out and stick in ok players like Lallana/Shaqiri/Origi there's very little drop off in performance overall.

You take Aguero out of City and there's a big drop in goalscoring, take De Bruyne out and there's clear drop in creativity.
City barely felt De Bruyne absence last season. I feel that there is a little bit of recency bias going on, on top of the fact that we have not actually seen Liverpool without their key players for a substantial amount of time, so I'm not sure how people can make these types of claims.
 
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NewGlory

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1/2. Klopp and Guardiola
3. Conte
4/5/6/7. Pochettino, Simeone, Allegri, Zidane

I think the top 2 are quite far ahead because of their success, style of football. Conte's a clear third because of his own success but can't match other two for style. After that it's a toss up between the 4, and there's a few others who are potentially just as good as them but haven't had the right platform to show it yet.

There's an abundance of very talented coaches around at the moment.
Pochettino at 4th! A coach that hasn't won anything ever. Yeah, sure...

Poche-in crowd is hilarious.
 

bosnian_red

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  1. Jurgen Klopp
  2. Pep Guardiola
  3. Zinedine Zidane
  4. Antonio Conte
  5. Mauricio Pochettino/Simeone/Allegri
My top 5 right now. Conte is a crazy one who gets results, but then goes off the rails the second he feels his board isn't matching his ambitions. Happened at Juve, Chelsea, and started off great at Inter (until they stop bringing in the players he wants). Pochettino did a good job at Spurs, but ultimately won nothing and at the end of the day only had them as top 4 competitors. Of course he could probably do more with a better transfer budget, but kind of an unknown right now and you can't throw him above any of the 4 above who actually have won regularly. Plus you can't forget someone like Simeone who is the best defensive manager around, Allegri who has always been successful (though nothing exciting).

Zidane is weird in that he's literally won constantly with Real Madrid, but you can't put him on top as it's Real Madrid (even though they flopped without him until they brought him back in). Third is fair on the balance that Klopp made Dortmund into one of the best teams in the world and was successful with them despite a shoestring budget, and has now turned Liverpool into the best team in the world without spending like crazy.

Pep reaches the highest peak out of all of them, but also requires more backing IMO. Give him the resources, and he'll do better than anyone else could do with that. Could he do it without the crazy backing? Of course he'd still have a top team, but essentially build like Klopp has done and reach the top level without that spending. Might be a situational thing that he never gets to prove, but Klopp having proved it puts him at the top.
 

spiriticon

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City barely felt De Bruyne absence last season. I feel that there is a little bit of recency bias going on, on top of the fact that we have not actually seen Liverpool without their key players for a substantial amount of time, so I'm not sure how people can make these types of claims.
Actually I think we have. This season Mane, Alisson and Salah have all been out for some time and they have still won nearly every game. It's unreal. Add to the fact i don't actually rate Lallana/Ox/Shaqiri/Orig as top drawer replacement attacking players (certainly not as much as I rate Benardo Silva/David Silva etc) so I'm extra amazed at the form they have.

Fair enough with De Bruyne though. I can't remember how long he was out for last season but they certainly didn't feel his loss.
 

JPRouve

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Actually I think we have. This season Mane, Alisson and Salah have all been out for some time and they have still won nearly every game. It's unreal. Add to the fact i don't actually rate Lallana/Ox/Shaqiri/Orig as top drawer replacement attacking players (certainly not as much as I rate Benardo Silva/David Silva etc) so I'm extra amazed at the form they have.

Fair enough with De Bruyne though. I can't remember how long he was out for last season but they certainly didn't feel his loss.
In the league, Salah has missed one game through injury and been benched twice and Mané has missed three game. They didn't miss them at the same time and not for long.. Allison is a goalkeeper as good as he is, it shouldn't and won't affect the way they play. As I said there is nothing unreal, they haven't been in a situation where they actually have to do without key players for a substantial amount of time, the closest player would be Fabinho but the alternatives are pretty good, one of them is also very expensive(Naby Keita).

De Bruyne missed +20 games.
 

spiriticon

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In the league, Salah has missed one game through injury and been benched twice and Mané has missed three game. They didn't miss them at the same time and not for long.. Allison is a goalkeeper as good as he is, it shouldn't and won't affect the way they play. As I said there is nothing unreal, they haven't been in a situation where they actually have to do without key players for a substantial amount of time, the closest player would be Fabinho but the alternatives are pretty good, one of them is also very expensive(Naby Keita).

De Bruyne missed +20 games.
3 games each for Mane and Salah (and maybe some more for Milner actually I forgot about him) is plenty of opportunity to drop points. Their winning run also extends quite a bit into last season which we haven't counted the injuries for as well. Also I wouldn't call Fabinho a key player for them. Henderson, Milner and Wijnaldum are probably more key but again my point is that it doesn't matter who they put out:

Mane/Salah/Firmino/Origi/Ox/Lallana/Shaqiri/Henderson/Wijnaldum/Milner/Fabinho/Keita/Matip/Gomez/Lovren/Alisson/Adrian

You can just pick any 8 out of those and it's the same winning result. I just don't see City having that amount of flexibility.

The only real constants are TAA, Robertson and Van Dijk, and so I feel the key to stopping them lies with these 3 players. Easier said than done though, of course.
 
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footballistic orgasm

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Yeah there's no doubt he's got a lot of class players (most of which he made tbh), but my point is you could take any of his stars (Salah, Mane or Firmino) out and stick in ok players like Lallana/Shaqiri/Origi there's very little drop off in performance overall.

You take Aguero out of City and there's a big drop in goalscoring, take De Bruyne out and there's clear drop in creativity.
During the 100 points season, Pep often benched Aguero for Jesus
Last season, KDB barely participated.

And in general, Pep barely ever starts the same 11 as the previous game. He rotates more than any other coach...