Steve Bruce was the first to get the axe. Martinez can't be much further behind. So the question was raised earlier by a Sunderland fan, what about Mark Hughes ... Lee Clark, etc. If you were to rank the top managers, who would they be and why? 1) Fergusen - consistantly great teams despite not having a huge budget when compared with, say, Chelsea. Seems to have a sixth sense on when to get rid of players like Jap Stamm and Ruud Van Nistelroy. 2) David Moyes - consistently good teams despite a budget comparable to Fulham's. 3) Rednap - When he comes, teams ALWAYS improve. When he leaves, they're doomed (see West Ham and Portsmouth). Great personality. 4) Wenger - great eye for finding and developing talent. His budget for buying players is relatively low, compared with ManC and Chelsea, but Arsenal are successful year after year. 5) Hodgeson - same as Moyes. Was poorly treated by Liverpool. 6) Pulis - like Moyes and Hodgeson has made something from nothing. Yes, Stoke are unpleasant to watch (IMO) and predictable, but who can argue with their success. 7) Martinez - he's probably next to get the axe, but nobody unearths football talent year after year like Wigan. Maybe that's his doing, maybe not, but I'll give him credit for keeping a small-budget team in the league so long.
Wigan chairman Dave Whelan has said so many times before that he would never ever sack Martinez even if he got them relegated and after he rejected Villa to stay with Wigan I really really doubt he'll be next to go. I think it's interesting that Steve Kean's new contract has halved the compensation due if he was to be sacked, maybe he'll be next. MY list would be: 1) Ferguson - Don't think you'll find many lists that didn't have Fergie top, he's kind of the Godfather of managers. 2) Wenger - Has a good philosophy and sticks to it, which can be his weak point too but the way he reformed Arsenal is a great achievement. 3) Redknapp - Great man manager and managed to turn spurs into somewhat of a title challenger and had them in the Champions League. Surely next in line for the England job. 4) Moyes - How Everton have been consistently top 6/8 on the shoestring budget they've had all these years is a credit to Moyes' managerial ability, it's a pity he doesn't get the funds to take Everton to the next level. 5) Hodgson - Maybe a bit biased but the job he did for us was nothing short of a miracle, saving us from relegation and getting us to the Europa League final. He'll always be a good manager despite what Liverpool fans might say.
Ferguson, Wenger, Moyes and Roy (biased as others). Disagree on Redknapp. Not as brilliant as people make it. Just a good manager. Had alwasy loads of money (in relative terms to the size of the teams he managed).
Yes, agree in general, however, I have to put Moyes at the top, in terms of "more bangs for your buck" - I think he has to be the best in the UK; in absolute terms obviously Ferguson (and perhaps Mourinho) would be ahead - but could they have achieved much on EWverton's budget ????
Redknapp's usual pattern - which doesn't seem to be particularly the case at Spurs - is to buy established players at or past their peak years who subsequently have little or no resale value. I've always thought he's a good manager for establishing short-term improvement and laying up the longer-term problem of an aging team. He hasn't always been around when that problem has kicked in, which is why it seems that teams improve when he joins and decline when he leaves. Bizarrely, if he was England manager, that wouldn't apply as there would be no wage bill for aging has-beens to be stuck on. I think Redknapp is quite tactically astute though. One manager who I rate highly, despite his current difficulties is Owen Coyle. If ever we were in the market for a manager (and I'm talking about a few years from now, Jol-haters!) I'd be quite happy if he rocked up at the Cottage. He wouldn't be my choice right now, if we needed someone, and as you'll know from other threads I don't think we need someone new at the moment. Agree with the general view that you can't look past Fergie's trophy-haul, and that Moyes is probably the most consistent over-achiever in terms of resources. Roy's time at Liverpool has led me to reassess on him though. I still love the man for what he did for us and for his dignity and bearing. When he went to Liverpool I would have included him on a list like this, but I think that his approach there - and he was let down by players and undermined by Dalglish's old team-mates in the media - showed that he's better with a smaller team. At the bigger clubs, fans demand a manager to try to win every game. He's perhaps too willing to be less ambitious and set out his stall for a difficult away draw. He's a great manager, but not necessarily one who would do brilliantly at a big club, whereas I think Moyes would thrive given the chance. Blimey, I'm talking Roy down. I feel like I've just assassinated my grandad or something.
I know what you mean Captain. I think all Roy's success has come at either smaller clubs or clubs who had hit hard times and he could rebuild (really I mean Inter here), or small nations. It is for this reason that I don't believe he would be an ideal England Manager. Deep thinker, yes, articulate, check, great man-manager, tick - ambitious - ah!
Captain, Those are interesting and well-thought out opinions. I like Coyle, too. He nearly made my list, but I see him as being in the same vein as Roy and Pulis - doing much with little. The thing about Roy was that he really wasn't able to change the team much from what he'd inherited. Hangeland came in as did a couple of other people, but for the most part he recycled what was here and made it work. He minimized the club's weaknesses and maximized it's strengths. Rednapp ... I just figured out why you don't like him. He coached at Bournmouth, then left for West Ham. Admit it, sir! No just kidding ... I won't argue with anything you've suggested about him, but at the same time you can't argue with the results, either. The man's a success wherever he goes. Moyes ... will be the next manager of Man U. I used to think Roy Keane would be the man, but he's not been the successful manager that I expected.
You didn't do Hodgson down, Captain. In fact that was an excellent obit.. sorry, summary. We didn't call him Uncle Woy for nothing.
Phew! I'm glad no one thinks I've turned on our beloved Roy. DR: Nice theory, but Redknapp's time at Bournemouth was long before I found myself beached on the golden sands. I'm not really one for holding grudges against people when they move on to bigger clubs anyway. I like Harry, and I think his teams play great football. He's a shrewd tactician too - I recall an FA Cup tie when Roy was manager when we were winning at half-time and Harry made a couple of changes and completely turned the match their way. Eider Gudjonson ended up scoring for them, if I remember rightly. My only worry with Redknapp is what happens after he goes, not what happens when he's there.
