The 10 Greatest Players in Football History Who Failed in Management

There have been many great football managers in the past that have never played the professional game themselves, such as Arsene Wenger and Jose Mourinho. So, you would imagine that being a professional player before going into the management side of things would make it easier. However, this isn’t always the case and below is a list of great players that didn’t go on to become such great managers.

Gary Neville

Probably the most famous failed managerial story out there. Gary Neville was an integral part of Manchester United’s domination in England under manager Sir Alex Ferguson, winning 10 Premier League titles during his career. However, following his career, he gave managing a go, becoming Valencia manager in December 2015. His time at Valencia only lasted 113 days, where he won 10 games from 28 and was sacked in March 2016.

Valencia's ex-president on Gary Neville:

"That Englishman we had, he was honestly the worst coach I've ever seen in my life."

😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/JbAuBUb9Cl

— Football Factly (@FootballFactly) January 24, 2025

Alan Shearer

Alan Shearer certainly had a successful playing career, scoring 260 Premier League goals, making him the top goalscorer in Premier League history. However, Shearer’s managerial career didn’t quite go the same way. The Newcastle United legend took over as manager of his boyhood club for the final 8 games of the 2008/09 season to try to save them from relegation. They went on to only win 1 from 8 and were relegated, and Shearer called his managerial career a day there.

Tony Adams

During his playing career, Tony Adams was the rock of the Arsenal defence and led the team to many great achievements. However, his managerial career wasn’t anywhere near as successful. He had two spells managing in England with Wycombe Wanderers and Portsmouth, which both didn’t last very long, and this resulted in Adams taking a break from management. When he gave it another go, he became manager of Granada in Spain, who were destined for relegation when he took over. He certainly didn’t turn it around though, losing all seven of his games in charge and Adams hasn’t managed since.

Diego Maradona

Widely considered as one of the most talented players to ever play the game, Diego Maradona certainly didn’t transfer those skills into management. Maradona did a bit of managing in Argentina before taking over the national side in 2008. There were big expectations on his shoulders after being such a hero in his playing career. However, he didn’t live up to those expectations, with Argentina being dumped out of the 2010 World Cup in the quarter-final 4-0 by Germany, which ended Maradona’s time in charge.

Wayne Rooney

Manchester United’s all-time top scorer and one of England’s greatest ever players hasn’t had a great managerial career so far. He began managing at Derby, where off-field problems didn’t help him, and they were relegated to League One. He then joined DC United in the MLS, where he was sacked as they failed to make the playoffs. His most recent managerial position was at Birmingham, where he only lasted 15 games after taking them from 6th position down to 20th. Most recently he managed Plymouth Argyle, where he only achieved a 20% win percentage.

🚨🔵 Birmingham City have now fired Wayne Rooney with immediate effect, decision confirmed.

Rooney failed to win 13 of 15 games in charge.

“Unfortunately, Wayne’s time with us did not go as planned and we have decided to move in a different direction”, club statement confirms. pic.twitter.com/NahBgU1Yi5

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 2, 2024

Ruud Van Nistelrooy

Ruud Van Nistelrooy was one of the greatest strikers of his generation, playing for the likes of Manchester United and Real Madrid. However, so far, his reputation as a manager isn’t quite on the same level as when he was playing. He began managing at PSV, where he didn’t do too badly, winning 34 from 50 games but he only lasted 327 days in charge. His most recent job was at Leicester City, where he was trying to keep them in the Premier League; however, he failed, winning just 5 of 27 games in charge. Will he give managing another go in the future?

Andrea Pirlo

One of the greatest midfielders to play the game, Andrea Pirlo struggled when he gave management a go. He took charge of Juventus back in 2020 and it was the first time in 9 seasons that they didn’t win the Serie A, as they ended up finishing fourth under his management. Since then, he has managed in Turkey with Fatih Karagumruk and back in Italy with Sampdoria, where he has struggled too.

Lothar Matthaus

Lothar Matthaus is Germany’s record cap holder and had a fantastic playing career playing for the likes of Bayern Munich and Inter Milan; however, his managerial career never really took off. He managed a variety of clubs, including Red Bull Salzburg and wasn’t very successful. He then turned to international management with Hungary and Bulgaria but failed to qualify for any major tournaments with either nation.

Edgar Davids

A fantastic playing career that included time at Ajax, Juventus and Barcelona clearly didn’t help Edgar Davids become a successful manager. He only gave it one attempt, which was in a player/manager role at Barnet in the 2012/13 season. Despite having a 37% win percentage in his time at Barnet, they were relegated from the football league and Davids hasn’t returned to management since.

Gianfranco Zola

Called the ‘little magician’ in his playing career, Gianfranco Zola unfortunately didn’t have the tricks to achieve success as a manager. He began his managerial career by becoming West Ham manager, where he won only 23 games from 80 and ended up being sacked, leaving the Hammers to fight relegation from the Premier League. Since then he has had a range of spells elsewhere, with one of the most notable failings at Birmingham City, where he won 2 from 24 and slipped out of the playoff picture.