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5 amazing managers who are without a job right now (July 2021)

Zinedine Zidane
Zinedine Zidane

It's been a tough couple of seasons in the footballing world in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. The pressure is on managers to deliver results as revenue streams have been blocked off. Clubs need to expand their horizons to break ground in a financial sense and success is the only sure-shot path to achieve it.

We were already living in a world obsessed with immediate results prior to the pandemic. It has only gotten a little worse over the past two years. We saw plenty of high-profile sackings happen in the 2020-21 season. As a result, several big names in the managerial circuit are currently unemployed.

With most of Europe's top sides looking to settle down ahead of the new season, some of these high-profile managers could remain unsigned for a while. Without further ado, let's take a look at five amazing managers who are without a job at the moment.


#5 Paulo Fonseca

AS Roma v FC Crotone - Serie A
AS Roma v FC Crotone - Serie A

Paulo Fonseca was most recently the coach of AS Roma. Although he has been a manager for 16 years, he has only spent two years managing a side from one of the top 5 European leagues.

Fonseca's Porto spell in 2013-14 was forgettable. However, he transformed Ukrainian outfit Shakhtar Donetsk, winning the league title and the domestic cup in each of the three seasons he spent there between 2016 and 2019. Fonseca was appointed as the manager of AS Roma on the back of his success with Skahtar.

At Roma, Fonseca was able to get the team to follow his methods and his style. But by the time the 2020-21 season had rolled up, he had an injury-riddled and stale side. The new ownership was also not in favour of handing Fonseca a new contract. Jose Mourinho has now been appointed in his place.

So Fonseca most recently guided AS Roma to a rather underwhelming seventh-placed finish in the 2020-21 Serie A season. But that is not exactly a fair reflection of his abilities and experience. He was heavily linked with the Spurs job but discussions derailed and the whole ordeal did not end on a good note.

#4 Ernesto Valverde

Real Sociedad v FC Barcelona - La Liga
Real Sociedad v FC Barcelona - La Liga

Ernesto Valverde had a successful stint with Barcelona before being sacked in January 2020. He won the La Liga title in his first two seasons with the Catalans. He also won the Copa Del Rey and the Supercopa de Espana in 2018.

Prior to taking over at Barcelona, he had also led Athletic Bilbao to Supercopa de Espana triumph in 2015. Valverde has remained without a managerial job since leaving Barcelona. He has almost 20 years of experience in the job and could be an asset to whichever club that signs him.

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