Ranking the 5 best managers in football right now based on their playing ability
Some of the most prominent managers in Europe right now are individuals who have enjoyed illustrious careers as players. It's great to see a player return to his former club in a manager's capacity. But it is not a very common occurence in the world of football.
Plenty of today's greatest managers have not had entirely satisfying careers as players. This goes to show that there's a lot that goes into making a successful team in addition to sheer technical excellence. Top managers need to be tactically astute, mentally strong and be excellent at man-management.
If they are managing a high-profile club, then the managers will need to be wary of the big personalities involved and get their players to work as a unit. If we start discussing the best managers in the game, we'll take all day. Today, we're about to do something different.
Let's take a look at five of the best managers in football right now based on their playing ability.
(Note: Only managers who are currently in charge of a club are included).
#5 Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
The 'baby-faced assassin', Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, spent 11 wonderful years at Manchester United before hanging up his boots. He was a quick, pacy and intelligent striker who thrived under Sir Alex Ferguson.
Solskjaer famously scored the stoppage time winner in the 1998-99 Champions League final against Bayern Munich to take Manchester United to the promised land. The Norwegian scored 126 goals in 366 appearances for the Red Devils and was the very definition of a 'super-sub'.
He has scored four goals in a game twice for Manchester United and is their only player to do so. Solskjaer has not hit the heights of his playing career in his managerial stint so far and there are huge question marks over his future right now.
He won six Premier League titles, one Champions League and two FA Cups during his time with Manchester United.
On this day, TWENTY FIVE YEARS ago, Manchester United signed Ole Gunnar Solskjaer for £1.5million from Molde FK.
366 Appearances
126 Goals
50 Assists
6 × Premier League Titles
2 × FA Cups
2 × Community Shields
1 × Champions League
1 × Intercontinental Cup
https://t.co/KBTuOXrjGU
#4 Pep Guardiola
Pep Guardiola is widely viewed as the most tactically astute manager in the world. He has done an incredible job with Manchester City and even came within touching distance of Champions League glory last season.
Guardiola had an excellent career as a player. He is a product of the famed La Masia and went on to make 384 appearances for Barcelona, scoring 12 goals and providing 44 assists across all competitions.
Guardiola was usually deployed as a deep-lying playmaker, a role in which he excelled during his time with the Catalans. He also played for Brescia and AS Roma before joining Qatari side Al-Ahli. Guardiola subsequently called it a day on his playing career after spending one season with Mexican club Dorados.
He was a creative playmaker with great tactical intelligence and technical ability. In his time as a player, Guardiola won six La Liga titles, one European Cup, one Copa Del Rey, four Supercopa de Espana and one UEFA Cup Winners' Cup.
Former and current Barcelona players look back on Pep Guardiola's time at the club in the documentary "Take The Ball, Pass The Ball."
The documentary looks 🔥 https://t.co/nTwIeTHrN7