What is 'new manager bounce' in football?

Clubs often think that a change in guard will lift the performance of a team. So it is common in leagues around the world that a rough patch often leads to the sacking of the manager.

According to a Premier League report, since the start of 2017/18, there were 26 managerial changes in the top-flight competition in four complete seasons.

Sometimes, we do find that with the arrival of a new tactician, the team suddenly finds a spring in their step and starts performing better. So, what is the 'new manager bounce' all about? GOAL gives you the details.

What is the 'new manager bounce'?

It is often noticed that after a prolonged period of poor results when a new manager takes charge, there is an immediate lift in performance.

It might be due to an increase in motivation and morale or the enthusiasm and fresh perspective the new tactician brings with him.

There is also a tendency to impress the new manager by the established names so that their places remain secured in the squad, whereas the fringe players also get an opportunity to restart.

The confidence returns and the results start going up. Hence, there is a possibility that the new man gets on a fast start and is able to turn around the fortunes quickly. This is what we call a 'new manager bounce' in footballing parlance.

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Is the 'new manager bounce' real or a myth?

If we go by statistics and data, the 'new manager bounce' phenomenon is actually real.

Of the 26 managerial changes that took place, 20 of them averaged more points per match (ppm) in his first five matches in charge than his predecessor.

In nine cases, the new man doubled the previous points average or did even better than that.

However, the new-found success may or may not be might not be translated in the long term.

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A few examples of 'new manager bounce'

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had an incredible start to his life at Manchester United after taking over from Jose Mourinho in 2018.

In his first match, United beat Cardiff City 5-1 and that was the first time United had scored five or more goals in a Premier League game since a 5–5 draw with West Bromwich Albion in Sir Alex Ferguson's final game in charge before his retirement in May 2013.

Solskjaer went on to win the next four league games as well which made him the first manager to win the first five league games in charge at United since Sir Matt Busby in 1946.

Meanwhile, Mourinho also had a flying start to his Tottenham career after he took charge of the Lilly Whites when he replaced Mauricio Pochettino in November 2019. He won his debut match 3-2 away against West Ham and registered four victories in his first five league games.

However, their form soon started to dip and in his first season with Tottenham, he finished in the sixth position in the Premier League.

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There was a lot of disappointment when Thomas Tuchel was sacked earlier in this season by Todd Boehly's Chelsea after a difficult start to the season. However, the Germana tactician also rode on the 'new manager bounce' syndrome when he replaced Frank Lampard at Stamford Bridge in January 2021.

He started with a comfortable 2-0 win over Burnley at home and then extended the unbeaten run to 14 games which included victories against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League. This set the record for the longest unbeaten run by a new head coach in Chelsea's history.