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#3 Ruud Gullit
Another Ballon d'Or winner who carved out a name for himself as a manager is Ruud Gullit. Retired Dutch midfield legend Gullit enjoyed a spectacular playing career for club and country. He was largely successful as a manager as well.
During his playing days, Gullit was so remarkable that he played in attack, defense and midfield at various points in his career. In 1987, Gullit moved from PSV in his native Netherlands to AC Milan. There he was a part of the Dutch trio of himself, Frank Rijkaard and Marco Van Basten.
Gullit was awarded the Ballon d'Or in 1987, and he captained the Dutch national team to glory in UEFA Euro 1988. The elegant midfielder won three Serie A titles and the European Cup twice at AC Milan before leaving the team permanently in 1995 for Chelsea.
At Chelsea, he was made player-manager and won the FA Cup in his first season in the role. With this he became the first foreigner and black manager to win the FA Cup. Disagreements with his bosses saw him lose his job on several occasions, but the Dutchman proved himself to be a brilliant manager.
#2 Zinedine Zidane
Zinedine Zidane is probably the most well-known case on this list. The Frenchman was an elegant midfielder in his playing days. Known for his silky dribbling, playmaking and wizardry, Zidane dazzled for the French national team, winning the 1998 FIFA World Cup and Euro 2000.
Zidane achieved great success while playing for Juventus and Real Madrid. He is one of only eight players to win the World Cup, Champions League and Ballon d'Or. He won the Ballon d'Or in 1998 and was named World Footballer of the Year in 1998, 2000 and 2003. Zidane scored one of the greatest Champions League goals ever in the final for Real Madrid in 2002 against Bayer Leverkusen.
Zidane managed Real Madrid from 2016, winning the UEFA Champions League thrice consecutively before leaving the club in 2018. He also won the FIFA Club World Cup and UEFA Super Cup twice in his first spell.
He returned for a second spell in 2019 and won the La Liga title as well as the Supercopa. He was named the Best FIFA Men's Coach in 2017.
#1 Johan Cruyff
Johan Cruyff was one of the managers who revolutionized football. The father of the famed 'Cruyffism' style of play and advocate for a quick passing game with high pressing, Cruyff achieved great success in football.
Cruyff had a successful career playing for Ajax, Barcelona and the Netherlands, reaching the FIFA World Cup final in 1974. At Ajax, he won the European Cup three times and eight Eredivisie titles before moving to Barcelona. A multiple Ballon d'Or winner, he won the Ballon d'Or thrice in 1971, 1973 and 1974.
As manager, he built Barcelona's dream team that contained the likes of Pep Guardiola, Hristo Stoichkov and many others. His Barcelona side was known for playing attacking football and dominating opponents. Barcelona's La Masia academy was his brainchild as he wanted to make it easier for reserves and youngsters to key into his footballing philosophy.
Cruyff won 11 trophies as manager of the club, the most of any manager aside from Pep Guardiola. He passed away in 2016 at 68 years of age, but is fondly remembered till date for his influence on the modern game.
