Why Hasn't An English Manager Won The Premier League?
By Luke Davis
The Premier League has been won by 11 different managers over the 31 season so far, not a single one of these managers was from England. Why has there never been a team crowned Champions of England with an English manager during the Premier League era? With Scotland, Spain and Italy all providing Premier League winning managers, the best England have had to offer in over 30 years were 2 second place finishes, Ron Atkinson with Aston Villa in the inaugural 92/93 season and Kevin Keegan with Newcastle in 95/96.
Why hasn’t an English manager found success in the Premier League and are we likely to ever see an English manager guide a team to the Premier League title in the coming years?
Firstly, and the most simple reasoning behind England’s lack of successful Premier League managers is the fact that winning the Premier League is extremely difficult. The Premier League attracts the World’s best managers and throughout it’s history has seen spells of dominance from a select few of some of the greatest managers of all time.
The first 10 years of the Premier League was dominated by Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United, with only Kenny Dalglish’s Blackburn and Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal ever beating them to the title. Ferguson’s dominance lasted up until his retirement after the 2012/13 season. Therefore, it was rare for any manager to win a Premier League title, let alone an English one. After 20 years of the Premier League it had only been won by a manager from outside of Scotland on 7 occasions.
This period of Scottish domination was shortly followed by the arrival of Spanish genius Pep Guardiola at Manchester City. Pep has now won 5 of the last 6 Premier League titles and shows no signs of slowing down. Essentially, the Premier League has historically been dominated by some of the greatest managers of all-time, it just so happens none of these were English.
The media’s attitude towards English managers and the reputation that comes with them is also a contributing factor as to why title winning clubs tend not to opt for English Managers. Historically, English managers have a reputation for being tactically naive with a simple no-nonsense approach to management, think Mike Bassett: England Manager. When it comes to billionaire owners looking to sell Premier League football across the continents, English Managers are naturally a less attractive prospect due to the preconceived image of English tactics in general.
The one major management role in English football that has consistently had an English manager in charge is the England National Team. England’s lack of major success at international level over the last 58 years has tarnished the reputation of a number of promising English managers. Thus, leaving top Premier League clubs to look abroad for foreign managers with reputations still intact.
Most top managers across the world had playing careers at the top level. In recent years players from England’s so called ‘Golden Generation’ have rarely taken up managerial roles. Those that did venture in to management have struggled to find success. Due to the reputation these players built in their playing careers they appear to have either been given jobs that they didn't have the experience or knowledge to operate at that level or have decided to stay clear of the pressure and insecurity that is football management and go straight into punditry to earn big money with job security.
The Golden Generation’s tendency to avoid learning their trade at a lower level and working up or avoiding coaching and management all together has essentially resulted in an entire generation of English footballers not taking the step towards managing a Premier League winning side. Where as the likes of Mikel Arteta and Xabi Alonso look set to have elite level managerial careers.
Finally, the English culture and approach to football is very unique compared to that in Europe and around the World. Historically, English players and managers have tended to avoid heading abroad to experience different footballing cultures. England’s top flight is widely considered the greatest football league in the world, therefore why would English players and coaches feel the need to go elsewhere when the best is on there doorstep. Unfortunately, the desire to remain domestic has resulted in under developed and less-experienced English coaches. Gary Neville, for example, had a very successful playing career and achieved many honours but having only ever experienced playing for one club and one manager his experience was limited. This was evident in his dramatically unsuccessful tenure as Valencia Manager in 2015/16.
In comparison, Guardiola’s success in the Premier League came after managerial spells at Barcelona in Spain and Bayern Munich in Germany. Managing in two different leagues in two different countries is the ultimate education in football and has made him the 2ndmost successful Premier League manager of all time, behind Sir Alex Ferguson.
So, will an English Manager ever win the Premier League? Probably, eventually. However, it remains to be seen if any of the current English managers will get a chance at one of the big jobs in the coming years. With the likes of Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard having already tried and failed at Premier League management, there seems to be very few potential elite level managers being produced in England. However, with the restructure and new strategic plan for the England National Team brought in for 2011, the success on the pitch has increased with a focus on high level coaching and development of young players. This emphasis on elite development will have a knock-on effect with a number of educated players stepping into coaching and management after their playing career comes to an end.
This new approach to football development, implemented by the FA, along with modern English players’ willingness to play further a field could see a new generation of elite coaches and managers coming out of England. One of these could go onto being the first English manager to lift the Premier League.