5 EPL managers who could have made it bigger

Over the years, the English Premier League has seen some talented managers. Some have gone on to win loads and loads of trophies while some have developed mediocre sides into competitive ones.There have also been managers who have been successful and were expected to go the next level; take charge of a top club or a top national side but ultimately failed to fulfil their potential.We take a look at five men who could have made it bigger, but could not in spite of their talents and abilities.

#1 David Moyes

When David Moyes took the Toffees’ job in March 2002, he inherited a side in freefall with relegation from the Premier League being a real possibility. In spite of that, the former Preston manager took Everton to the Champions League after finishing fourth in the 2004/05 season ahead of their Merseyside rivals Liverpool.

Overcoming the restricted budget, Moyes did a commendable job at Goodison Park. Everton were a consistent side under the Scottish manager, regularly challenging for European football. During his spell at the club, Everton never finished below eighth in the league.

Sir Alex Ferguson considered him the right man to succeed him at Old Trafford. And in 2013, the “Chosen One” took over the Manchester United job. A lot was expected from him but unfortunately, Moyes failed to live up to expectations. Disappointing performances became a visible aspect of the side during his tenure. Eventually, he was asked to leave before the season ended when Manchester United had no chance of clinching a European spot, with Ryan Giggs taking over as the interim manager.

Given his good work with Everton, Moyes was expected to lead United into a new era. Sadly, that only remained a distant dream. The Scotsman at present is managing La Liga side Real Sociedad and will be hoping to move on from his traumatic time at Old Trafford.

#2 Harry Redknapp

The EPL’s oldest manager was at one point in time considered the front runner for the England job. Tottenham Hotspur fans will surely remember the 2011/12 season when the former Portsmouth, West Ham and Southampton manager guided the side to a fourth place finish.

For Spurs, a fourth place finish was a fantastic result but that season was different. For a long time, Tottenham were well placed to finish third and above their North London rivals Arsenal. However, a string of bad performances coupled with the constant speculation of Redknapp being named the English manager derailed their campaign. Although they finished fourth, they missed out on Champions League football after sixth placed Chelsea won the competition that year.

Over the years, Harry Redknapp had done a decent job with the Saints, the Hammers and Pompey. He won the FA Cup with Portsmouth and also guided Spurs to the the Champions League quarter-finals. For a long time, he was considered as the ideal man to take up the England job and after the resignation of Fabio Capello, speculation was rife that Redknapp would take over.

Roy Hodgson was eventually given the England job and Redknapp left the White Hart Lane job at the beginning of the new season. At present, he manages QPR and is trying to battle relegation from the EPL.

#3 Martin O\'Neill

The Northern Irishman was a success with both Leicester City and Celtic and won the League Cup twice with the former and a League title with the latter. However, his time at Villa Park was what really defined him as a manager.

Taking charge of a mediocre side, Martin O’Neill brought out the best in the likes of Ashley Young, James Milner, Gareth Barry and Stewart Downing. They finished sixth in the 2006/07 season and continued their consistent performance for the next two seasons.

In the 2009/10 season, his side beat Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool. Villa even made the League Cup final that year only to lose to Sir Alex’s side. He left the Villa job at the beginning of the new season and remained unemployed for more than a year before accepting the Sunderland job.

Given his decent work at Villa Park, Sunderland fans had expected something similar from him. After initially impressing, things fizzled out. He failed to make much of a difference at the Stadium of Light and was sacked in March 2013. Had he impressed at Sunderland, he would well have been a contender for a top job at a club like Tottenham or Newcastle. But that never happened.

Presently, he is managing the Republic of Ireland national side.

#4 Alex McLeish

Having achieved all he could in the Scottish game, the former Rangers and Scotland manager took charge of Birmingham City in the 2008/09 season. He got them promoted to the EPL and the following season, guided the side to a 12 game unbeaten run. In the 2010/11 season, Birmingham went on to win the League Cup beating Arsenal in the final at Wembley.

Since that success, his touch began to fade. Birmingham got relegated that season in spite of winning a domestic trophy. He left the job at the end of the season and joined rivals Aston Villa. His appointment was met with protests and controversies and McLeish never really got going. After a disappointing spell, he left at the end of the season.

He tried to resurrect his managerial career by taking over at Nottingham Forest in December 2012. But he only lasted more than a month and eventually left the job. He then joined Belgian side Genk in August 2014 and has been doing well so far.

His spell with Birmingham was applauded, but McLeish failed to live up to it and do a better job at Villa.

#5 Andre Villas-Boas

The former Jose Mourinho deputy was appointed manager at Chelsea in 2011 after having led Porto to a treble – the League, Cup and the Europa League title – the previous season. Roman Abramovich had hoped that Villas-Boas could emulate the success of the “Special One”. Chelsea somehow qualified from the Champions League group stage but their league form was rather indifferent.

A first leg defeat at Naples was the final straw and Andre Villas-Boas was sacked thereafter. Under interim boss Roberto Di Matteo Chelsea went on to win the Champions League that season.

His talents and abilities did not however go unnoticed. Tottenham were quick to offer him the manager’s post which had been lying vacant since Redknapp’s resignation. Andre Villas-Boas took over and led a successful season for the Spurs. The side finished fifth in the EPL and managed to attain the highest points in the club’s history in the Premier League.

In fact, after that impressive first season, Villas Boas was once again a man in demand. There was even talk of FC Barcelona appointing him as their manager. Villas-Boas himself spoke of offers from PSG and Real Madrid.

Those rumours quickly faded away as he began a new season at Spurs. The sale of Gareth Bale had crippled him and the new players were taking time to adjust. He lasted till December and was eventually relieved of his duties.

At present, he is at Russian side Zenit Saint-Petersburg who recently failed to make the knockout stages of the UCL.