So, since 2023 is nearing its end, wanted to share my opinion regarding who were the best all year, starting today with coaches.
10: Edin Terzic
9: Mikel Arteta
8: Marco Rose
7: Eddie Howe
6: Luciano Spalletti
5: Carlo Ancelotti
4: Xabi Alonso
3: Unai Emery
2: Simone Inzaghi
1: Pep Guardiola
Honorable mentions include: Roberto de Zerbi, Stefano Pioli, Massimiliano Allegri, Diego Simeone, Maurizio Sarri & Michel.
Who would you include in your top 10 list?
People will probably disagree but I would put Ten Hag in the honourable mentions. People forget how well he did last season with a club in such turmoil. He got champions league football. He got to 2 finals winning 1 one of them. He even managed to get past Barcelona over 2 legs. Also people are exaggerating how bad man utd are this season. They are 6th in the table. Not too far points wise from the champions league spots.
I liked him during Ajax days, and was thinking he would clean up Manchester United, but instead I saw a coach with double standards, someone who is too biased for his tactics rather than improving the individual power of his players, and the way he handles backstage drama is really sick.
I would say, this team without in-form Christian Eriksen and Bruno Fernandes, they are really toothless.
And I stopped taking him seriously after conceding 7 against Liverpool, where his tactics and every flaw of this team got exposed again, and this time he didn’t show any disciplinary action to fix the issues, which still exist today.
Given all the drama surrounding the club and the owner situation. I think any coach would struggle at man utd. They had two players who were facing charges of domestic abuse. Then there was the ronaldo and sancho situations. All this drama probably tanks team morale. Also the owners not giving ten hag what he needs to succeed.
But like I said before despite all this ten hag is still managing to keep them competitive and win trophies. Conceding 7 against any team is always gonna suck especially when it’s your biggest rival. But when we look at who did better over a 38 game season I don’t think it matters in the long run.