The Premiership season begins with a vengeance on Saturday, and there are going to be some new managers on show with huge reputations treading the touchline. They will be in the accompany of Jose Mourinho unceremoniously fired mid-season by Chelsea who will now handle the reins at Manchester United. Arsene Wenger will be returning for his twentieth season in charge of Arsenal. Below is a list of the major personalities and a summary of the major honors they have accumulated in their managerial careers:
Pepe Guardiola @ Manchester City
Barcelona
- La Liga: 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11
- Copa del Rey: 2008–09, 2011–12
- Supercopa de España: 2009, 2010, 2011
- UEFA Champions League: 2008–09, 2010–11
- UEFA Super Cup: 2009, 2011
- FIFA Club World Cup: 2009, 2011
- Bayern Munich
- Bundesliga: 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16
- DFB-Pokal: 2013–14, 2015–16
- UEFA Super Cup: 2013
- FIFA Club World Cup: 2013
Jurgen Klopp @ Liverpool (hired halfway through last season)
Borussia Dortmund
- Bundesliga: 2010–11,[20] 2011–12,[21]
- DFB-Pokal: 2011–12[27]
- DFL-Supercup: 2013,[87] 2014[87]
- UEFA Champions League: Runner-up 2012–13
Antonio Conte
- Serie A (3): 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14
- Coppa Italia: 2011–12 (Runner-up)
- Supercoppa Italiana (2): 2012, 2013
Jose Mourinho
In ten seasons of club management, Mourinho has led his club to win its domestic league eight times, the UEFA Champions League twice and the UEFA Cup once. Between 2003 and 2012, Mourinho did not go a single calendar year without winning at least one trophy.
- Porto[201]
- Primeira Liga: 2002–03, 2003–04
- Taça de Portugal: 2002–03
- Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2003
- UEFA Champions League: 2003–04
- UEFA Cup: 2002–03
- Premier League: 2004–05, 2005–06, 2014–15
- FA Cup: 2006–07
- Football League Cup: 2004–05, 2006–07, 2014–15
- FA Community Shield: 2005
- Inter Milan[201]
- Serie A: 2008–09, 2009–10
- Coppa Italia: 2009–10
- Supercoppa Italiana: 2008
- UEFA Champions League: 2009–10
- Real Madrid[201]
Arsene Wenger
Arsenal
- FA Premier League (3): 1997–98, 2001–02, 2003–04
- FA Cup (6): 1997–98, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2004–05, 2013–14, 2014–15
Football is all about the money and the lucrative European Champions League is the ultimate goal. Guardiola and Mourinho have each won the trophy a couple of times. Klopp and Wenger have had to be content with runners-up spots. Conte has returned to club management following a two year stint as Head Coach of Italy where he achieved moderate success. Mourinho’s ego took a hard shot to the head when he was fired from Chelsea, but it appears to be rejuvenated at Manchester United bolstered by the expensive signing of Paul Pogba.
Wenger enjoyed considerable success at Arsenal between 1997-2004, but the cupboard has been bare for several years apart from two FA Cup wins in 2014 and 2015.
Guardiola is the cream on top of the strawberries. He introduced ticky-tacky football including false number 9s at Barcelona; winning La Liga 4 times, and the Champions League twice. He won the Bundisliga three times with Bayern Munich, but failed to bring home the bacon in the Champions League. He is a man of vast experience, talent and success, but can he deliver in the highly competitive Premiership where the technique and talent maybe not at the same level as La Liga or Bundisliga, but it is fast, furious and physical?
Conte won Serie A with Juventus in three successive seasons. He is very intense, emotional and wears his heart on his sleeve. Just watch him in the technical area this season, doing imitations of a windmill on speed. It remains to be seen whether he can rediscover the magic formula for Chelsea this season.
Klopp was hired half way through the season replacing Brendan Rodgers. Klopp has a big engaging personality and proved to be a huge hit with the fans on Merseyside. He made promising strides in a relatively short time, and he begins a full season with a squad moulded into the Dortmund way.
Mourhino believes it was his destiny to manage Manchester United. He has a resume arguably only second to Guardiola, but the pressure to return United to the top of the perch will be enormous. Mourinho usually wins a title in his first season with a new club, so it could be a match made in football heaven.
Wenger brought style to the Premiership, but he has a habit of refusing to make the big signings to complement the foundations of a very good team which could possibly turn them from perennial top four into title winners again. Typically, Wenger’s only major signing in the summer was Xhaka (35 million pounds) a midfield player where he has an embarrassment of riches.
Itemized below are other major signings in the transfer market by clubs in the top tier of the League:
Liverpool: Mane (30m,) Wijnaldum (25m,)
Manchester City: Sane (42m,) Gabriel Jesus (27m,) Gundogan (21m,) Nolito (14m,) and Stones (47.5m.)
Manchester United: Bailly (30m,) Mkhitaryan (26m,) Ibrahimovic (free) and Pogba (100m)
Tottenham Hotspur: Janssen (18.5m,) and Wanyama (11m)
Chelsea: Batshuayi (33m) and Kante (32m)
Leicester City: Musa (18m,) Mundy (13m,) and Mapustka (7m.)
I include Leicester City in the elite category because they are the current holders of the Premiership title. They have bolstered their squad with players who are not household names, but significantly they were forced to sell Kante to Chelsea who was arguably the key cog in their success last season. Leicester proved that you don’t have to spend millions on players to achieve success, but their manager Claudio Raneiri was recently quoted as saying: “there’s more chance of ET landing in Piccadilly Circus than Leicester City retaining the title.”
The transfer window doesn’t close until August 31st, so clubs could still be active in the market depending on how the first half dozen games of the season evolve. Owners want immediate success and expect their highly paid managers to deliver. It could be an exciting season on and off the pitch, but don’t expect another surprise title winner.
