It’s that time of year again. Clubs are getting twitchy. Do we have the right man to take us forward this season or do we need a new face in charge?
Fulham have kicked off the silly season (unsurprisingly) by sacking Slavisa Jokanovic and immediately announcing the appointment of Claudio Ranieri (slightly more surprising).
Thankfully – for entertainment’s sake – football clubs have a habit of making some dodgy managerial appointments, so here are six of the most shocking in recent memory.
1. Valencia – Gary Neville
The first question that needs to be asked in the curious case of Gary Neville at Valencia is simple. Why? The former Manchester United right back had zero managerial experience and the only evidence we had of his potential was him picking faults on Monday Night Football for Sky. Look deeper though, and you’ll see a betrayal of Valencia fans by owner Peter Lim, who had business links with the Class of ’92 well before the hiring of Neville.
The signs were there that this would be a disaster before a ball was even kicked, Neville didn’t speak a word of Spanish and appeared woefully underprepared for the task in front of him. Four months into the job and Neville was sacked after being unceremoniously dumped out of the Champions League, losing 7-0 to Barcelona and crashing out of the Europa League. Though the appointment shocked many, the end result did not.
2. Barnet – Edgar Davids
Ajax, Milan, Juventus, Barcelona, Inter………..Barnet?! That’s right, after calling time on a glittering career on the pitch, Dutch legend Edgar Davids joined Barnet in a joint managerial role with Mark Robson. Joint-manager quickly became player-manager, and when Robson was sacked, Davids assumed full control of Barnet.
The club from north London were relegated to the Conference shortly after, yet somehow Davids kept his job despite reportedly refusing to travel to away games that required an overnight stay. He resigned in January of 2014, a year-and-a-half after joining.
3. Leeds – Marcelo Bielsa
Possibly the only appointment on this list that may not end in tears, in the summer of 2018, Leeds United announced that legendary manager Marcelo Bielsa would be joining the club. This is the same Bielsa who was the mentor to Pep Guardiola and Mauricio Pochettino, and he was joining Leeds…who have been a running joke for years…in the second tier of English football.
None of it made sense, and yet at the time of writing Bielsa has Leeds sitting pretty in 3rd, just three points off the top of the Championship. They’re also playing some exciting football and are earning plaudits nationwide.
4. Aston Villa – Alex McLeish
You’ve just watched your arch rivals suffer relegation from the Premier League, it’s the ultimate satisfaction. Do you sit back and revel in their misery? Do you offer your sympathy? Well if you’re Aston Villa, you wait until five days after they sack their manager, and hire him yourself.
Alex McLeish had overseen the relegation of Birmingham City in the 2010/11 season, and yet five days after being sacked, he was offered the job across the second city. Villa fans were incensed, protesting the appointment and vandalising the training ground with anti-McLeish graffiti, but it was too late – McLeish was on board. He lasted just one season (shock) and although he managed to keep Villa in the top flight, his time at the club isn’t remembered fondly.
5. Granada – Tony Adams
The fact that Arsenal legend Tony Adams basically became a meme during his time at Granada tells you all you need to know about his stint at the club. Despite being out of managerial work for five years, and an unimpressive CV, Adams was surprisingly chosen as the man to save Granada from relegation to the second tier of Spanish football.
Needless to say, he failed, losing all seven games he was in charge of the club. At least we still have that training ground video as a keepsake.
6. Chelsea – Avram Grant
After the extraordinary success of Jose Mourinho’s first stint in charge of Chelsea , the club from west London were left looking for his successor in September of 2007 after he left. A big name was expected to continue the fine work Mourinho had done at Stamford Bridge, what Chelsea fans got instead was the anti-Mourinho, Avram Grant.
With an obvious lack of experience at the highest level, and an uninspiring way of conducting himself, Grant lasted just a year at Chelsea, and he was sacked despite reaching the Champions League final and finishing the Premier League in second place.
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