Which top football managers are currently without a club?
- Brett Liddle
- 25 April 2023
Do we stick or twist? That's the question many football club owners will be pondering this summer, especially with so many managers currently out of work.
Premier League manager turnover has been at a record-high during the 2022/23 season, with 12 getting the bullet so far.
The overall record for a whole campaign is 15, and we haven't even got to the end of season clear out yet.
Chelsea, Leicester, Tottenham, Crystal Palace and Southampton all currently have managers in post who are keeping the seat warm until the end of the season.
You could argue have Leeds manager Javier Gracia's 'flexible' contract puts him into that camp too.
The owners' new manager shortlists are going to be groaning with potential candidates.
Planet Sport takes a look at some of the names scratching about for a job ahead of the 2023/24 season.
Mauricio Pochettino
Pochettino made his name as manager of Southampton where he only had one full season before being poached by Tottenham.
Although his time at Spurs lacked silverware, he gained many admirers throughout the footballing world due to his style of play.
He led the club to the 2018/19 Champions League final against Liverpool after they scored a last-minute winner against Ajax. Spurs may have ultimately lost the final but many saw this as a sign of big things to come.
After leading Spurs to four top-four finishes in his five seasons at the helm he was relieved of his duties after a bad start to the 19/20 campaign.
He joined Paris St-Germain in January 2021, but despite winning the Ligue 1 and the French Cup, he importantly failed to make an impact in the Champions League with a squad of star names, which saw him get the bullet in the summer of 2022.
Antonio Conte
Conte has certainly had a mixed experience of managing in England.
He won the Premier League title in his debut season at Chelsea, followed by the FA Cup in his second season, before leaving and going to Inter Milan.
His time at Spurs bore zero trophies... but should that be a surprise?
His time in Italy has practically immortalised him in the eyes of many as he won three Serie A titles in a row with Juventus and another many years down the line with Inter Milan.
He has also held the role of Italy manager further showing just how suited to high standard football he is.
During his time at Chelsea, he had a 2.12 points per game record this was lowered at Spurs (1.78) but that's still not awful.
He continues to be linked with many high-profile jobs in Europe most notably Man United several seasons ago and a return to Chelsea shouldn't be ruled out.
An Italian club is the likely destination for Conte though.
Zinedine Zidane
Although he has had a short spell in management, Zidane boasts the most impressive 'CV' out of any manager on this list.
His two spells managing Real Madrid brought three Champions Leagues, two La Liga titles, two club World Cups and he also won the FIFA Best Club coach award twice as well.
If he were to throw his name into the hat of any vacant job in Europe it would at the very least be given some serious consideration.
Zidane's name is often brought up when a high-profile position becomes available, but he is yet to take any role since leaving Real Madrid in 2021.
Brendan Rodgers
Dumped by Leicester after one bad season in the Premier League, the man who brought the Foxes their first ever FA Cup has an impressive CV.
Two Scottish titles at Celtic, plus two Scottish Cup and three League Cups, he's also won the LMA manager of the year after finishing Premier League runners-up with Liverpool.
Surely, he won't be out of work for too long, and he could be a safer pair of hands for Tottenham to guide them out of their current crisis.
West Ham and Leeds have also been circling. Don't rule out a return to Celtic either if Ange Postecoglou jumps ship at the end of the season.
Graham Potter
It's fair to say Graham Potter overachieved at Brighton, but it rightly gave a him a swing at the big time with Chelsea - and what a disaster that was for both the club and manager.
Chelsea spent over £500million this season and risk finishing in the bottom half of the table which can largely be put down to Potter's appointment as manager.
His style of play didn't suit the players at all, the squad was heavily overcrowded forcing him run two training games instead of the usual one and he reportedly struggled to manage the club's big names.
But this is not the only time he has underachieved.
He was appointed Swansea City manager in the 2018/19 Championship season, where he led the Swans to a tenth-placed finish when many thought automatic promotion or at least the play-off finish should have been on the cards.
His successful time at Brighton shines like a beacon though, and this could easily lure a club owner to his shores. Under Potter Brighton cemented themselves in the top flight and regularly surprised many.
Now out of a job, a return to the Premier League has already been offered by Leicester City, which he turned down as he was having a break before deciding his next move.
West Ham, Leeds and Tottenham appear to be leading the race for his signature. But don't rule out Nottingham Forest and surprisingly Reading…maybe it's because they play in blue and white.
Rafa Benitez
Benitez has already held four jobs in the Premier League, all of which had varied levels of success.
He famously won the Champions League with Liverpool in 2005 and the FA Cup a year later and delivered four top four finishes during his six years at the club. He also won the Europa League with Chelsea and guided Newcastle back to the Premier League and kept them in the division.
But his time at Everton couldn't be any more different. Benitez took charge of a total of 19 league games in the 21/22 campaign, winning just five and losing 10.
Leeds and West Ham have both reportedly been sniffing around the Spaniard, but many see him as a manager who is well past his peak.
Marcelo Bielsa
Bielsa was appointed Leeds United manager in the 2018/19 Championship season. This turned many heads at the time as he is an incredibly high-profile manager, and many top managers, including Pep Guardiola cite him as an inspiration.
In his first season with Leeds, it was clear he massively improved the squad as they played high quality attacking football and finished in the play-off, where they lost to Derby County.
The following season he won the Championship sending Leeds to the Premier League for the first time in 16 years. Leeds played fearless attacking football when they returned to the Premier League which earned them a ninth-placed finish.
But he was subsequently let go in the following season after a poor run of form in an injury plagued season and was succeeded by Jesse Marsch.
Bielsa has managed some of Europe's and South America's elite footballing sides and two international teams.
He came out earlier this season saying that he had no interest in the Bournemouth job after he was linked with it.
Jesse Marsch
Leeds United gave our next entry the push earlier on in the campaign after a lacklustre run of form. Marsch only managed to win four in 20 during this campaign which left Leeds glued to the bottom end of the table.
He did, however, keep Leeds United in the Premier League last season when he took charge after Marcelo Bielsa's departure. This was no easy task to perform either as it was a season plagued by injuries and suspensions.
Marsch built up his reputation as a manager working with a trio of Red Bull clubs down the years including RB Leipzig.
He almost saw an instant return to Premier League management as Southampton held talks with him almost directly after his Leeds dismissal and Leicester appeared close to bringing him in after sacking Brendan Rodgers.
However, a return to the Premier League once the season has settled on the 2022/23 season would be a surprise.
Steven Gerrard
A Liverpool legend who many had tipped to take over from Jurgen Klopp whenever he left Anfield.
However, his failure at Aston Villa has seen his stock dramatically decrease and a return to his old club would now seem very unlikely.
Gerrard took over Rangers in 2018 and helped stabilise them after many years in the lower leagues of Scottish football due to multiple financial breaches.
He led Rangers to their first Scottish Premier League title in 10 years during the 20/21 campaign. They also went undefeated and collected a club record 102 points. Then the Premier League came knocking.
Gerrard joined Aston Villa and despite improving the club's league position in his first season, struggled in his second and was shown the door earlier this campaign.
He was another who was considered for the vacant manager's post at Leicester, he was also in the running for the Poland national job but missed out.
Nathan Jones
The former Luton Town manager had an experience at Southampton he would probably like to forget to say the least.
In his eight Premier League games in charge, he won just one and lost the remaining seven.
His stint with the Saints only lasted a measly 94 days, which no doubt had him regretting leaving the Hatters earlier in the season where he had just regained the respect of the fans back after dropping them for Stoke in 2019.
That being said, Southampton were already struggling by the time he was appointed, and it hasn't got much better since he left.
At Championship level Jones had his team playing some good attacking football regardless of the fact he had one of the lowest budgets in the league and was constantly predicted to finish in the bottom half of the table.
Alan Pardew
Although this wouldn't be an exciting appointment by any means, Pardew has shedloads of Premier League managerial experience.
Taking the helm at five teams in England's top flight, including Crystal Palace, Newcastle United and West Ham - all with varying degrees of success.
After a miserable spell at West Brom, he bounced around the European leagues with his last job coming at Aris Thessaloniki in the Greek Super League 1 which lasted just five months.
Pardew played a relatively conservative brand of football, which favoured the counter-attack which had many dubbing him as old fashioned.
He did see some success playing like this however, leading Newcastle to a fifth-placed finish in the 2011/12 season. He also won the Premier League Manager of the Year award as well as securing a place in the Europa League for the Magpies for the first time in seven years.
It would be a huge shock if Pardew wangled himself another job in Premier League management, but he's pulled off several surprises before so don't totally rule it out. Club owners are funny creatures.
