Sub-edited by Aidan Elve
A question that many football fans around the world often ask themselves is: Who is the greatest coach to ever manage in the Premier League? Many base their opinion on accolades and/or specific honours that they’ve won but, in this feature, we’re going to break down every statistic and find out who truly is the “best”.
There are several obvious names that people mention when asked this particular question – such as Arsene Wenger, whose tenure at London-based club Arsenal saw him spend an incredible 22 years with the Gunners and, as per statbunker.com, saw him manage 828 games where the Frenchman achieved a 57% win percentage consisting of 476 wins, 199 draws and 153 losses. This, in total, equates to an impressive 1.96 points per match ratio as well as accumulating a total of 1627 points during his time in the English top-flight.
Another name that fans tend to mention when asked this particular question is the footballing legend Sir Alex Ferguson. His astonishing 27 year reign at the helm of Manchester United saw him etch his name as one of not only the Premier League’s, but the world’s greatest ever coaches. During his spell at ‘The Red Devils’, despite managing less games than the aforementioned Arsene Wenger, the Scotsman achieved an incredible win percentage of 65% which includes a record of 528 wins, 168 draws and 114 losses – totalling 1752 points during his time in the Premier League.
However, many fans also base their judgement and opinion on just who is the greatest coach to ever manage in the Premier League off of longevity and the impact that these specific managers have had on English football as a whole. There are several different names that can have their names thrown into the hat when making this argument such as the man mentioned above, Sir Alex Ferguson, although we are going to look at two names in particular who English football fans know better than anyone else and they are both Sir Roy Hodgson and Harry Redknapp.
To begin with, Sir Roy Hodgson is most known for his time at Crystal Palace who at the time of writing this feature is also the team he currently manages following a stint at The Eagles between 2017-2021, the 76 year old re-joined the London based club following the sacking of Frenchman Patrick Vieria at the back end of last season.
Hodgson has also plied his trade at other English-based sides such as, Blackburn Rovers, Fulham, Liverpool, West Brom and Watford as well as a managerial stint as the head coach of the English national side.
However, the 76 year old’s time in managing in English football has seen him achieve a record of 130 wins, 96 draws and 166 losses which equates to a 1.24 points per game ratio and has seen him achieve a point tally of 486 as well as a win percentage of 33 over the span of 392 games, however this is subject to change given Hodgson’s current managerial status.
Although the other name fans tend to mention as the best when basing their argument off longevity is that of Harry Redknapp, who is most known for his time as manager of North-London based side Tottenham Hotspur as well as having managerial stints at other English-based sides such as AFC Bournemouth, West Ham United, Portsmouth, Southampton, Queens Park Rangers & Birmingham City.
Redknapp’s time in the top flight has seen him accumulate a total of 875 points as well as achieving a record of 236 wins, 167 draws and 239 losses over the span of 642 games which equates to a 1.36 points per game ratio and a win percentage of 37%.
There’s no denying that there are so many more names that can be spoke about in this debate based off several different arguments including the ones featured in this piece, but after having read this feature go ahead and ask yourself, “Who is the greatest manager to ever coach in the Premier League.
