Best Premier League managers ever

The best Premier League managers aren’t just those to have guided their team to the title, or a lofty finish to guarantee Champions League football.

Some of these best coaches who have managed in the Premier League have excelled at the other end of the table, working on a shoestring budget to keep their club in the top flight against the odds.

Here’s our list of the best Premier League managers ever.

32. Tony Pulis

Anyone who has ever helped a club to establish itself in the Premier League and remain there, despite the spending power possessed by the giants of the game, deserves a big pat on the back. Tony Pulis did that at Stoke City, before keeping Crystal Palace up against the odds; he also did a decent job at making West Brom competitive.

31. Paul Jewell

Paul Jewell will always be fondly remembered by Wigan Athletic fans for getting the Latics into the mighty Premier League. It was fairy tale story, which didn’t end there. Jewell proved himself adept at competing with the big boys, albeit briefly, and even took the club to the League Cup final. 

30. Ronald Koeman

When Ronald Koeman left Southampton for Everton in 2016 after two years at the club, the mood wasn’t good on the south coast. The Dutchman was no stranger to a Manager of the Month award and made Saints fans believe silverware was not out of reach. Koeman guided the club to two top-seven finishes and helped secure European football. 

29. Thomas Frank

Thomas Frank made himself a hero at Brentford when he became the first person to lead the Bees into a top-flight season since 1946/47. Despite having limited resources to play with, the Dane created a side that could take the game to anyone. Brentford finished 13th in 2021/22 and ninth the following season, just missing out on Europe. 

28. Roy Evans

Liverpool were floundering when Graeme Souness left the hot seat in 1994. For Roy Evans, getting the club back to winning ways and competing seriously for league titles on a regular basis would be no easy task. Although Evans ultimately came up short, he assembled an attacking side and brought a level of optimism back to the club. 

27. Roberto De Zerbi

Graham Potter set lofty new standards at Brighton & Hove Albion, and his impressive record with the Seagulls earned him a move to Chelsea in 2022. His replacement made an immediate impression with his attacking style of play, and he helped guide the club to an unlikely sixth-place finish and a spot in the UEFA Europa League. 

26. Eddie Howe

Eddie Howe made his name at Bournemouth, where he enjoyed, by Premier League standards, a lengthy stay with the south coast club. He was already popular on the terraces thanks to guiding the club to the top flight for the first time, and he did his reputation no harm at all by keeping them there for four seasons.

25. Ralph Hasenhuttl

Southampton fans will forever be reminded of the two 9-0 defeats that the club suffered when the charismatic Austrian was in charge. True, there were some dark times for Saints fans during the Hasenhuttl years. However, they also punched well above their weight at times, recorded some big scalps and briefly topped the league during his reign.

24. Martin O’Neill

The two-time European Cup winner spent four years with Aston Villa and led the club to three successive top-six finishes in the Premier League. The Northern Irishman didn’t deliver the Birmingham club silverware, but he did guide them to a League Cup final in 2009/10, and he left a lasting impression on many a player he worked with.

23. Alan Curbishley

Alan Curbishley might not be one of the first names that springs to mind when debating the best Premier League managers of all time. However, it must say something about his quality as a coach that Charlton went backwards after his departure, and don’t forget how he kept West Ham up, in one of the league’s best survival acts. 

22. Unai Emery

Unai Emery faced quite the task at Arsenal, where he took over from Arsene Wenger in 2018. His stay was a short one, but the Spaniard has proved himself to be a great tactician, both in Spain and back in England with Aston Villa, where he turned around a troubled and relegation-threatened side in 2022.

21. Brendan Rodgers

The Northern Ireland-born coach has enjoyed impressive stints at a number of Premier League clubs, including Swansea, Liverpool and Leicester. In 2013/14, his Liverpool side came agonisingly close to winning the title. After a trophy-laden spell with Celtic, he joined Leicester, where he won the FA Cup and had the Foxes playing some memorable football. 

20. Gerard Houllier

The Frenchman may not have won the Premier League title with Liverpool, but he did make a healthy contribution to their trophy cabinet. Over six years at Anfield, Houllier brought through Steven Gerrard, Jamie Carragher and Michael Owen, building a team that won a League Cup, UEFA Cup and FA Cup treble.

19. Roy Hodgson

The former England boss has enjoyed a globe-trotting managerial career, and he’s found time to take his place among the Premier League greats. Fulham were 18th when Hodgson took over in December 2007, but he led them to safety before guiding them to seventh the following season, their highest-ever finish, and the Europa League final the year after that.  

18. Harry Redknapp

Harry Redknapp played a key role in the development of Frank Lampard and Rio Ferdinand when he started his Premier League career with West Ham, where he helped the club qualify for Europe. He also won the FA Cup with Portsmouth in 2008 and guided Tottenham into the Champions League, an achievement that saw him named Premier League Manager of the Year.

17. Sam Allardyce

His time in charge of England may have been very brief, but 'Big Sam' has managed hundreds of top-flight games; he’s developed a reputation as something of a fire-fighter and a specialist in organising teams down at the bottom end of the table. However, he also did a terrific job at Bolton, helping the club qualify for Europe. 

16. Sir Bobby Robson

The much-loved Sir Bobby took over Newcastle in September 1999, with the club bottom of the table. In his first home game, the Magpies thrashed Sheffield Wednesday 8-0. Finishes of fourth, third and fifth between 2002 and 2004 took the club back into Europe, and proved that 'Wor Bobby' had not lost his touch, despite a long period away from the English game. 

15. Mauricio Pochettino

Some Saints fans raised their eyebrows when Mauricio Pochettino arrived on the south coast, but the Argentine soon won a lot of people over. After leading Southampton to eighth, their highest finish in a decade, Pochettino took Spurs to their highest-ever Premier League finish when they came second in 2016/17, before guiding them to the Champions League final the following year.

14. Carlo Ancelotti

The serial trophy-winner may have spent more time coaching elsewhere in Europe, but the Italian has left a permanent mark on the Premier League. With Chelsea, he pipped Manchester United to the 2009/10 title by one point, before clinching the FA Cup, too. His stay with Everton may have been brief, but his coaching qualities cannot be questioned.

13. Kevin Keegan

Kevin Keegan built one of the most entertaining sides in top-flight history at Newcastle. Sadly, he left Tyneside without the Premier League title that he probably deserved. However, the race for the title in 1996/96 was one of the most captivating battles in the league’s history. His ability to motivate his players was one of his greatest assets.

12. Manuel Pellegrini

The Chilean enjoyed a dream debut season at Manchester City in 2013/14, winning the Premier League and League Cup double, making history by becoming the first manager from outside Europe to win the league. Pellegrini later returned to the England’s top flight with West Ham, guiding the Hammers to a top-half finish in 2018/19.

11. Claudio Ranieri

Anyone who can lead a team of 5,000/1 outsiders to Premier League glory must have something incredibly special about them. The Italian’s tactical nous and composed manner helped the Foxes clinch the most stunning title ever, possibly in any sport. He was sacked the following season, but he will always have legendary status at Leicester.

10. David Moyes

It takes some doing to survive nine years managing the same club in the Premier League, but David Moyes did more than just that at Everton, leading the Toffees to fourth place and an FA Cup final. It earned the Scot a chance to manage Manchester United. That it didn’t turn out so well there is probably no reflection on his coaching ability.

9. Rafael Benitez

The Spaniard led Liverpool to Champions League and FA Cup glory, as well as a second-place finish in the league, during six years at Anfield. He also won the Europa League and FA Cup at Chelsea and stayed with Newcastle following the club’s relegation to lead them back to the top flight. At Everton, things just didn’t go to plan. 

8. Sir Kenny Dalglish

'King Kenny' was a legend before the dawn of the Premier League era, winning three league titles at Liverpool. Like most of the greats, though, he went on to prove himself elsewhere. In 1994/95, he led a Blackburn Rovers side, fired by Alan Shearer and Chris Sutton, to Premier League glory, pipping the great Manchester United to the title. 

7. Roberto Mancini

The Italian was the architect of City’s first Premier League title, and their first league title in 44 years, captured in the most extraordinary of fashions thanks to Sergio Aguero’s late strike on the final day of the season. Mancini was also responsible for signing some of the club’s greatest ever players, such Aguero, David Silva and Yaya Toure.

6. Antonio Conte

Great managers don’t always get things right, and the Italian’s spell with Spurs is certainly a blemish on Conte’s CV. However, in 2016/17, the charismatic coach did lead Chelsea to the title in his debut season in England, winning 30 of his 38 games, as the London side racked up 93 points. 

5. Jose Mourinho

The Portuguese arrived in England declaring that he was the “special one” – and he delivered. Jose Mourinho created a siege mentality at Chelsea and assembled a side that rarely looked like conceding, never mind losing. He immediately ended Chelsea’s 50-year wait for a top-flight title, then made it two in a row (before adding another in his second spell nine years later). 

4. Arsene Wenger

The great Frenchman had more than a few doubters when he arrived at Arsenal, but he went on to prove himself as one of the best in the business, becoming the first-ever non-British coach to win an English top-flight title in 1998. In 2003/04, he was at it again, leading the Gunners’ 'Invincibles' to title glory.

3. Pep Guardiola

There can be little doubt that the former Barcelona man has one of the finest managerial minds of all time. The tactical genius has shown that he can work his magic with the best players in the world – and make them even better. True, he’s often had the resources to spend big, but his ability to create winning machines is unrivalled. 

2. Jurgen Klopp

Whoever came to Merseyside to win the Premier League title for Liverpool and end the years of hurt for the club's fans was going to be a legend. That man was Jurgen Klopp, whose blistering side stormed to the title in 2019/20. The German has also shown that he can mastermind a rebuild and bring in fresh faces without having a blank chequebook at his disposal. 

1. Sir Alex Ferguson

Never mind the Premier League; Sir Alex Ferguson belongs to the pantheon of the greatest managers ever to grace the game. It’s a mark of the legendary Glaswegian’s immense influence that Manchester United struggled badly in the years following his retirement. His record of 13 titles will probably never be surpassed.