The best and worst of the managers this season.
With the 2014/15 Premier League season quickly approaching the halfway point CaughtOffside thought it was a good time to pick out our five best and five worst managers so far this term.
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Worst
5. Neil Warnock, Crystal Palace
Tony Pulis left unexpectedly and the Eagles needed to find someone quickly to replace the man who had become a hero at Selhurst Park for keeping Palace up against the odds in 2013/14.
Yet in Warnock the South London team have found an uninspired option who looks set to undo all the hard work from last year and oversee demotion back to the Championship.
4. Roberto Martinez, Everton
A very likable boss, but after guiding the Toffees to their best ever Premier League points tally last campaign and then spending big over the summer the Merseysiders should be kicking on.
Yet instead they seem to have regressed and the solid defence they built their success upon last season is becoming increasingly unreliable as they keep dropping points.
3. Nigel Pearson, Leicester City
The Foxes had by far – on paper – the toughest start to the campaign of all the promoted sides, but some impressive results – including a 5-3 victory over Manchester United – suggested Leicester would be just fine.
Yet that was where the positive results ended for Pearson’s men and they can’t seem to buy a win anymore, with Leicester rooted to the bottom of the table with just 10 points.
2. Steve Bruce, Hull City
Solid league form and a first ever FA Cup final for the club last term suggested Bruce was starting something very exciting at the KC Stadium and this was followed with a summer of interesting signings.
However, flair players like Hatem Ben Arfa and Abel Hernandez have been nothing short of flops and the Tigers’ form has also been affected as they stare relegation in the face currently.
1. Brendan Rodgers, Liverpool
Yet in our minds the worst offender was the man who actually won Manager of the Year last campaign, proving that form and reputation can change so quickly in football.
The sale of Luis Suarez to FC Barcelona has clearly affected the Reds more than they expected and a succession of underwhelming summer signings has seen Rodgers struggling to make anything positive happen at Anfield.
Best
5. Louis van Gaal, Manchester United
It’s probably a little too early to tell just how effective van Gaal will be at Old Trafford, but already the Dutchman has shown he has the experience to at least give it a good go.
Their record of straight league wins came to an end against Aston Villa on Saturday and while much improvement is still needed, the Red Devils’ current position of third is a great improvement on what predecessor David Moyes achieved.
4. Garry Monk, Swansea City
When the popular Michael Laudrup was unexpectedly axed by the Swans and replaced with unproven player-manager Monk many didn’t feel too great about the future of the club.
Yet the 35-year-old has defied his critics and an opening day win over Man United got the Welsh side off to a great start in what has been an impressive season to date.
3. Ronald Koeman, Southampton
There was an even worse fate predicted for the Saints this campaign after they lost their boss and five key players over the summer to other Premier League sides.
Koeman was quite a coup for the club though and in Graziano Pelle and Dusan Tadic the Dutchman also made full use of his knowledge of the Eredivisie when making signings, with the Hampshire side currently fifth in the table.
2. Jose Mourinho, Chelsea
For the first time as a Blues manager Mourinho failed to win a single piece of silverware last season and was quick to address the problem by signing Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas.
Both have been brilliant since arriving at Stamford Bridge and under the guidance of the 51-year-old it would be very hard to bet against them not winning at least one trophy this time around.
1. Sam Allardyce, West Ham United
Yet our No.1 boss is actually the man who was most peoples’ favourite to be the first to be sacked after the Hammers owners suggested they had lost faith in Allardyce.
However, the positive results keep on coming for the East London side and at this midway stage West Ham are in the Champions League positions in fourth place.