5 Football Legends who failed as managers

Just like any another sport, in football too, great players don’t necessarily make good managers. In fact, some of the most successful managers in the history of the sport have had forgettable careers as professional footballers.There is a preconception amongst each and every football fan that good footballers should make decent managers because of the knowledge and a certain killer instinct that they have acquired during their playing days, it doesn’t always necessarily happen so. Although there are certain instances where good footballers have gone on to become great managers such as Pep Guardiola, Kenny Dalglish, Michael Laudrup and Frank de Boer, the presupposition doesn’t necessarily hold true.Here is a list of five legends who have failed miserably as managers:

#5 Tony Adams

Tony Adams during an England U-19 fixture against Turkey U-19

The Arsenal legend and undoubtedly, one of the best centre-backs in the history of English football, Tony Adams has had a forgettable career as a football manager. It was expected that the former Gunners captain would make a great manager thanks to his technical brilliance as well as superb leadership qualities.

However, the former England defender failed to make his mark as a good manager followed by a couple of stints at Wycombe Wanderers and Portsmouth Football Club.

The 49-year-old former Arsenal man who had won 66 international caps for England also took on a managerial project in Azerbaijan, which lasted around a year.

Adams, who had put on his Arsenal shirt for a record 504 times, joined the Wycombe Wanderers as a manager in 2003 where he was unable to fend off the club’s relegation to the third tier of English football.

Later in 2006, Tony Adams was appointed as the assistant manager of Portsmouth and helped the club finish at a respectable 9th position in the Premier League.