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Goal.com Top 10: One Season Managers
In tribute to Manuel Pellegrini's solitary season at Real Madrid, Goal.com's Patrick Reilly hails ten managers who lasted a similar period...
29-May-2010 4:30:00 PM
By Patrick Reilly
10) Leonardo - AC Milan (2009/10)
The Brazilian's solitary season at the San Siro won't go down as one of the best in their history, far from it, but he demonstrated enough qualities to suggest he can be a good coach elsewhere. Milan spent precious little of the Kaka money on real quality so Leonardo was forced to rely on the old guard and an increasingly thin squad. That the Rossoneri were even in the title race at all is a miracle. Leonardo departed to a 3-0 home win over Juventus. Certainly worth another season at the very least.
9) Sven Goran Eriksson - Manchester City (2007/08)
Dumped into the managerial wilderness for a year after his stint with England came to close, the Swede returned with the Citizens in 2007. With the backing of Thaksin Shinawatra he flashed the cash and assembled a new team which started the season in fine form even earning Sven an early manager of the month award. Doing the double over Manchester United was the highlight but a final day 8-1 spanking by Middlesbrough brought his tenure to a disappointing close. Had they ended the season instead of starting it in flying fashion he could be the one spending the billions at Eastlands now.
8) Didier Deschamps - Juventus (2006/07)
A former favourite with the Bianconeri, Deschamps had the task of dragging Juve back to Serie A after the Calciopoli affair. Nursing a nine-point penalty, the World Cup winner convinced many of the leading players to remain at the club and promotion was secured long before the season reached its climax. Having done the hard bit Deschamps swiftly resigned after alleged difficulties with senior management.
Has recently won Ligue 1 with Marseille... in his debut season.
7) Jose Mourinho - Uniao Leiria (Jan 2001 - Jan 2002)
Real Madrid's new coach didn't spend a full season at little Leiria but made enough of an impression to earn the notice of Porto. After a brief stint at Benfica, the former translator upped sticks for Leiria where he took the unfashionable club from 10th the previous season to their best ever finish of fifth spot and a place in the UEFA Cup. Mourinho departed for Porto in January '02 and later brought Leiria players Derlei and Nuno Valente to the Dragons.
6) Avram Grant - Chelsea (2007/08)
Hear me out. Nobody is suggesting for a second that Grant is a better manager than the above candidates but had John Terry converted his penalty in Moscow, the Israeli would have led the Blues to the Champions League. Cruelly dubbed 'Average Grant' by some Chelsea players, Grant took over from Jose Mourinho in September 2007 after the Portuguese coach had overseen a stuttering start to the season.
He maintained Chelsea's then unbeaten home league record and led the Blues to the Carling Cup final which they lost. Grant also got his team beyond the semi-finals of the Champions League, something the Special One never managed.
Chelsea finished just two points shy of Manchester United with Grant keen to highlight that those points were dropped during his predecessor's reign. He was given the boot shortly after the Champions League defeat.
5) Manuel Pellegrini - Real Madrid (2009/10)
Ramping up a record 96 points wasn't enough for Pellegrini to keep his position at Real Madrid. Brought in to wrestle the title from Barcelona, the Chilean's team scored 102 league goals, more than even the Catalans, but defeats to Alcorcon in the Copa del Rey and Lyon in the Champions League cost him his job. It will be interesting if the new incumbent at the Bernabeu can match Pellegrini's remarkable stats.
4) Wim Jansen - Celtic (1997/98)
When Jansen arrived in the green half of Glasgow in 1997 his brief was simple - stop Rangers from winning 10 titles in a row. The Gers had matched Celtic's record the previous season and Jansen delivered the goods and more as the Hoops pipped Rangers by two points and also won the League Cup. 48 hours after sealing the title Jansen was gone after a series of rows with Celtic's then Managing Director Fergus McCann.
3) Jupp Heynckes - Real Madrid (1997/98)
Delivering Real Madrid's first European Cup for 32 years wasn't enough to save Heynckes from the Madrid chopping board. Poor domestic form, in particular a 3-0 hiding by Barcelona, put paid to the German's chances of a second season at the helm. Los Blancos finished fourth in La Liga and Heynckes was given his marching orders a week after leading Los Merengues to an unlikely 1-0 win over Juventus in the Champions League final.
Then-president Lorenzo Sanz paid tribute, "If we had not won the European Cup, this would have been one of the worst seasons in recent years." That's gratitude for you.
2) Bobby Robson - Barcelona (1996/97)
Two barren years meant even Johan Cruyff wasn't immune from the sack as Barcelona elected to bring in Bobby Robson in 1996. A deal was already done for Louis Van Gaal the next season so expectations were low for the English coach, who having missed out on Alan Shearer, signed a certain Ronaldo instead. With the Brazilian in sensational form Barca charged to the Spanish Super Cup, Copa del Rey and the European Cup Winners Cup. Real Madrid, who played significantly fewer games all season, just pipped Barca to the league by two points. Bobby moved quietly upstairs at the end of the season when news of the Van Gaal deal was broke to him.
1) Fabio Capello - Real Madrid (1996/97, 2006/07)
Having won everything in sight with AC Milan, Capello departed for Spain in the summer of 1996. The league title, in which his team didn't lose a single home game, duly followed before Capello returned to the San Siro for a second spell which proved a disaster. In 2006, Madrid came calling again and the Italian worked wonders to deliver a second league title notable for some incredible comebacks in the second half of the season.
Nevertheless he was still given the boot 11 days after clinching the title on the final day in dramatic fashion. Capello was on holiday when he got the news after being told the club needed somebody 'who can give us more than just results.' Hmm.
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The Brazilian's solitary season at the San Siro won't go down as one of the best in their history, far from it, but he demonstrated enough qualities to suggest he can be a good coach elsewhere. Milan spent precious little of the Kaka money on real quality so Leonardo was forced to rely on the old guard and an increasingly thin squad. That the Rossoneri were even in the title race at all is a miracle. Leonardo departed to a 3-0 home win over Juventus. Certainly worth another season at the very least.
9) Sven Goran Eriksson - Manchester City (2007/08)
Dumped into the managerial wilderness for a year after his stint with England came to close, the Swede returned with the Citizens in 2007. With the backing of Thaksin Shinawatra he flashed the cash and assembled a new team which started the season in fine form even earning Sven an early manager of the month award. Doing the double over Manchester United was the highlight but a final day 8-1 spanking by Middlesbrough brought his tenure to a disappointing close. Had they ended the season instead of starting it in flying fashion he could be the one spending the billions at Eastlands now.
8) Didier Deschamps - Juventus (2006/07)
A former favourite with the Bianconeri, Deschamps had the task of dragging Juve back to Serie A after the Calciopoli affair. Nursing a nine-point penalty, the World Cup winner convinced many of the leading players to remain at the club and promotion was secured long before the season reached its climax. Having done the hard bit Deschamps swiftly resigned after alleged difficulties with senior management.
Has recently won Ligue 1 with Marseille... in his debut season.
7) Jose Mourinho - Uniao Leiria (Jan 2001 - Jan 2002)
Real Madrid's new coach didn't spend a full season at little Leiria but made enough of an impression to earn the notice of Porto. After a brief stint at Benfica, the former translator upped sticks for Leiria where he took the unfashionable club from 10th the previous season to their best ever finish of fifth spot and a place in the UEFA Cup. Mourinho departed for Porto in January '02 and later brought Leiria players Derlei and Nuno Valente to the Dragons.
6) Avram Grant - Chelsea (2007/08)
Hear me out. Nobody is suggesting for a second that Grant is a better manager than the above candidates but had John Terry converted his penalty in Moscow, the Israeli would have led the Blues to the Champions League. Cruelly dubbed 'Average Grant' by some Chelsea players, Grant took over from Jose Mourinho in September 2007 after the Portuguese coach had overseen a stuttering start to the season.
He maintained Chelsea's then unbeaten home league record and led the Blues to the Carling Cup final which they lost. Grant also got his team beyond the semi-finals of the Champions League, something the Special One never managed.
Chelsea finished just two points shy of Manchester United with Grant keen to highlight that those points were dropped during his predecessor's reign. He was given the boot shortly after the Champions League defeat.
5) Manuel Pellegrini - Real Madrid (2009/10)
Ramping up a record 96 points wasn't enough for Pellegrini to keep his position at Real Madrid. Brought in to wrestle the title from Barcelona, the Chilean's team scored 102 league goals, more than even the Catalans, but defeats to Alcorcon in the Copa del Rey and Lyon in the Champions League cost him his job. It will be interesting if the new incumbent at the Bernabeu can match Pellegrini's remarkable stats.
4) Wim Jansen - Celtic (1997/98)
When Jansen arrived in the green half of Glasgow in 1997 his brief was simple - stop Rangers from winning 10 titles in a row. The Gers had matched Celtic's record the previous season and Jansen delivered the goods and more as the Hoops pipped Rangers by two points and also won the League Cup. 48 hours after sealing the title Jansen was gone after a series of rows with Celtic's then Managing Director Fergus McCann.
3) Jupp Heynckes - Real Madrid (1997/98)
Delivering Real Madrid's first European Cup for 32 years wasn't enough to save Heynckes from the Madrid chopping board. Poor domestic form, in particular a 3-0 hiding by Barcelona, put paid to the German's chances of a second season at the helm. Los Blancos finished fourth in La Liga and Heynckes was given his marching orders a week after leading Los Merengues to an unlikely 1-0 win over Juventus in the Champions League final.
Then-president Lorenzo Sanz paid tribute, "If we had not won the European Cup, this would have been one of the worst seasons in recent years." That's gratitude for you.
2) Bobby Robson - Barcelona (1996/97)
Two barren years meant even Johan Cruyff wasn't immune from the sack as Barcelona elected to bring in Bobby Robson in 1996. A deal was already done for Louis Van Gaal the next season so expectations were low for the English coach, who having missed out on Alan Shearer, signed a certain Ronaldo instead. With the Brazilian in sensational form Barca charged to the Spanish Super Cup, Copa del Rey and the European Cup Winners Cup. Real Madrid, who played significantly fewer games all season, just pipped Barca to the league by two points. Bobby moved quietly upstairs at the end of the season when news of the Van Gaal deal was broke to him.
1) Fabio Capello - Real Madrid (1996/97, 2006/07)
Having won everything in sight with AC Milan, Capello departed for Spain in the summer of 1996. The league title, in which his team didn't lose a single home game, duly followed before Capello returned to the San Siro for a second spell which proved a disaster. In 2006, Madrid came calling again and the Italian worked wonders to deliver a second league title notable for some incredible comebacks in the second half of the season.
Nevertheless he was still given the boot 11 days after clinching the title on the final day in dramatic fashion. Capello was on holiday when he got the news after being told the club needed somebody 'who can give us more than just results.' Hmm.
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