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#3 Zinedine Zidane - 114
Zinedine Zidane is widely regarded as one of the best midfielders in the game's history. However, the 1998 FIFA World Cup winner is well on his way to being called one of the best managers ever.
Despite having no prior managerial experience, Zidane took charge of Real Madrid midseason in 2015-16. He immediately guided them to the UEFA Champions League title. Los Blancos did a La Liga and Champions League double the next season, before winning their third European title on the trot in his third year.
Zidane won 11 trophies in two and a half seasons at the Santiago Bernabeu. Apart from his tactical acumen, the Frenchman was also indebted to Cristiano Ronaldo for his staggering success.
The Portuguese netted an astonishing 112 times in 114 games under Zidane. That includes 72 goals in La Liga and 32 strikes in the Champions League.
Ronaldo's absence was conspicuous during the Frenchman's second stint in charge of Los Blancos in 2020.
#2 Jose Mourinho - 164
Jose Mourinho is another storied manager in the game's history. The Portuguese, currently at AS Roma, has won league titles in four different countries. He is one of a handful of managers to have won the UEFA Champions League for multiple clubs.
Mourinho spent a three-season stint at the Santiago Bernabeu in early 2010s after winning the continental treble with Inter Milan. He inherited a team of superstars, with Cristiano Ronaldo being his crown jewel.
The Portuguese could not end Madrid's decade-long Champions League drought. However, he successfully interrupted the brilliant Barcelona team's three-season La Liga stranglehold in 2011-12 by beating them to the league title.
Ronaldo was at his rip-roaring best under Mourinho, contributing a staggering 168 goals (including 17 hat-tricks) and 49 assists in only 164 games. The 37-year-old scored 120 goals in La Liga and 36 in the Champions League during this period.
Although there were reports of friction between the two, the Mourinho-Ronaldo combination was a huge success. It paved the way for Real Madrid's Champions League domination in the next few years.
#1 Sir Alex Ferguson - 292
Sir Alex Ferguson is a legendary manager, who dominated English football.
The Scot created a dynasty at Manchester United, transforming a free-falling club with dying flames back into an English and European powerhouse. He won 13 league and two Champions League titles during his near three-decade stay at the club.
One of the world-class players he unearthed and managed at Old Trafford was Cristiano Ronaldo. Under Ferguson, the young Portuguese blossomed from a raw uncut diamond into a glistening gem. Ronaldo has no qualms about admitting that Ferguson has been a father figure to him.
In six years under the legendary Scot, Ronaldo played nearly 300 games, contributing a rather modest 119 goals and 73 assists by his staggering standards. Ronaldo won his first (of five) Ballon d'Or awards under Ferguson (2008).
The partnership ended when the Portuguese left for Real Madrid on a world-record €94 million transfer in 2009. "He was bloody fantastic" is how Ferguson described Ronaldo, when the Portuguese first arrived at Old Trafford in 2003.
