5 managers who have the most difficult jobs in Football

Vincenzo Montella
Vincenzo Montella has the unenviable job of returning the glory days back to Milan 

There’ve been a lot of managerial changes across Europe in recent times. With the European Championships over, national teams took time to evaluate and many major nations decided to part ways with their managers. Several Club sides have also made changes, as new men have been brought in at Manchester City, United, PSG, AC Milan and Bayern Munich and many other clubs.

The life of a manager can be incredibly tense. You can’t let the pressure evaporate as you step onto the pitch as a footballer, because well, you don’t step on the pitch. Instead, you have to watch agonizingly as your players miss chance after chance, concede a sloppy goal and just hope they’re able to implement strategies that you spent sleepless nights mulling over.

In this piece, we will look at 5 managers who despite their credentials aren’t going to have it easy this year.

#1 Vincenzo Montella (AC Milan)

It should be a massive honour for any manager in world football to join a team with 7 European Cups and the prestige that Milan have, but for the last few years, they have been a shadow of their former selves. The management of the team has been terrible and has had no coherent vision. Inexperienced managers have been brought in on a whim of the President, and the revenues have been dropping, leading to fewer resources for transfers.

Finally now on the verge of a takeover by a Chinese conglomerate, the club could be on the verge of a new era, but there is massive confusion over whether there are funds available for the summer market.

Players of the quality of Mateo Musacchio, Borja Valero, Piotr Zielinski and Jose Sosa have all been linked but Milan’s market seems stalled for the time being. So Montella has to start his pre-season with an incomplete squad and still somehow look to satisfy the now impatient and expectant Milan fans.

#2 Tite (Brazil)

Tite Brazil
Tite has been given the reins in Brazil after their embarrassing exit from Copa America

Being the manager of the Brazil national team has never been easy, but now the famous footballing nation have reached a low point that they could never have imagined a few years back. Not too long ago, Neymar was dazzling the world at the 2014 World Cup, but a 7-1 demolition by Germany seemed to stun the nation and they don’t seem to have recovered since.

Disappointing Copa America campaigns and underwhelming performances have followed and with Dunga failing to resurrect the team, Tite, takes over after a fantastic campaign with Corinthians.

The 55-year-old has plenty of decisions to make, decide whether to stick with the more conservative style of previous manager Dunga, or go a different way and perhaps call up many of the players the fomer coach left out as well. Either way, the world will be watching on keenly.

#3 Pako Ayestaran (Valencia)

Pako Ayestaran
Can Pako Ayestaran make the Mestalla a feared place again?

Before Atletico Madrid stunned Spanish football by winning La Liga in the 2013-14 campaign, Valencia were the last team to win the league besides Real Madrid and the Catalans. Los Che have had a turbulent period of late though, with their last La Liga campaign shrouded in inconsistent performances. They eventually finished 12th, and the fans are anything but happy.

Valencia have good young players but are forced to sell their best players every year and constantly have to rebuild. This time has been no different, with Andre Gomes recently departing for Barcelona.

Ayesteran is the 8th manager in a 4-year period for Valencia and will constantly be under pressure to do well with a talented although constantly changing squad.

#4 Claudio Ranieri (Leicester City)

Claudio Ranieri
Claudio Ranieri is finding it hard to keep his star players even after winning the Premier League

The Italian has just come off the most splendid awe-inspiring season of his life. Any combination of adjectives would seem like an understatement for what he achieved with Leicester last year, but it is proof of the incredible competitiveness of the EPL that he already has an incredibly tough job to now try and replicate last year’s success.

The fans are delighted of course, and will remain so whatever happens this year, but there’s the added burden of expectation now, a Champions League campaign to navigate, and competing with the massive money swirling around other clubs.

Manchester United, City, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool have clearly shown they are in no mood to dawdle anymore. Spurs and West Ham will continue to improve under Pochettino and Bilic, and Leicester will need to be at their brilliant best to show that they are a genuine force in English football.

#5 Antonio Conte (Chelsea)

Antonio Conte
Antonio Conte will be looking to take Chelsea right back to the top in his first season at Stamford Bridge

Satisfying Roman Abramovich is never easy, Just ask the likes of Ranieri, Mourinho, Ancelotti and Luiz Felipe Scolari. Each one of those is accomplished managers in their own right, but they’ve never been allowed to get too comfortable at Stamford Bridge.

Conte comes in after Chelsea’s most disappointing season in recent times, but it doesn’t mean the Russian owner will be prepared to give him too much levee. With the equitable financial might in the league now, Chelsea can’t possibly afford another below-par campaign.

Conte has established his credentials as one of the world’s best, but Abramovich will be ready to pull the plug if things don’t go according to plan.

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Edited by Staff Editor