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Most of the footballers go into a management job after hanging up their boots. Some go for media jobs also, but the sheer excitement of handling a team can be too difficult for a footballer to resist. Also, it is relatively easy for a very successful footballer to become a manager of a top club after retiring.
Cesc Fabregas’ move to Monaco from Chelsea means that he is going to play under his former Arsenal teammate Thierry Henry. Henry has been appointed the manager of Monaco in 2018 and played with Fabregas for Arsenal from 2003 to 2007. We would now look at five such footballers who have played under one of their former teammates.
#1 Paolo Maldini & Alessandro Costacurta (under Carlo Ancelotti)
Both Maldini and Costacurta are legendary former players of AC Milan and their association with the club lasted for more than two decades. Maldini played for Milan from 1985 to 2009 and Costacurta from 1986 to 2007. They were part of the legendary Milan team coached by Arrigo Sachi in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Carlo Ancelotti was also part of the legendary Milan side under Sachi and played for them as a defensive midfielder from 1987 to 1992. Milan won the European Cup two successive European Cups in 1988-89 and 1989-90. Ancelotti, Maldini and Costacurta were all members of that all-conquering Milan side.
Ancelotti began to pursue a managerial career after retiring and became the coach of Milan in 2001. Both Maldini and Costacurta were still playing for Milan and become very important players for Milan now. Ancelotti must have been very happy to get the opportunity to coach two of his former teammates and remained the Milan coach till 2009.
Ancelotti was arguably more successful for Milan as a manager than he was a player. He won 2 UEFA Champions League and 1 Serie A title as the coach of Milan. Both Maldini and Costacurta contributed significantly to Milan’s success under Ancelotti. Maldini scored 33 goals from 902 matches and Costacurta 3 from 663. Both of them remain among the finest to have played for Milan.
#2 Xavi and Carles Puyol (under Pep Guardiola)
Guardiola was a defensive midfielder who played for FC Barcelona from 1990 to 2001. He was a member of the “Dream Team” of Barca coached by Johan Cruyff. He also won the European Cup with Barca in 1992. Guardiola had young Xavi and Puyol as his teammates in the late 1990s and early 2000s. However, they could not win any major silverware together.
Guardiola started pursuing a managerial career after retiring in 2006 and became the Barca manager in 2008. Both Xavi and Puyol were still going strong for Barca and helped Guardiola make Barca the best club side in the world. Barca won the Champions League in 2008-09 and 2010-11 under the tutelage of Guardiola. They also won 3 LaLiga titles under him.
Xavi continued playing for Barca till 2015 and Puyol till 2014. Both of them remain among the greatest footballers in the club’s history.
#3 Gianluigi Buffon (under Antonio Conte)
Antonio Conte was a central midfielder who played for Juventus from 1991 to 2004. He also won 1 Champions League and 5 Serie A titles with Juve. On the other hand, Gianluigi Buffon was signed by Juve from Parma in 2001 and became a club legend in course of time.
He and Conte were teammates for quite a few seasons and also won 2 Serie A titles together. They played together under the legendary Marcelo Lippi as Juve became one of the strongest clubs in Europe in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Conte became the manager of Juve in 2011 and went on to coach them till 2014. He also won 3 successive Serie A titles with Juve and Buffon was one of the key members of that team. Conte became the manager of Chelsea in 2016 and also won a Premier League title with them, whereas Buffon moved to Paris Saint Germain after having played in 656 matches for Juve.
