The top 10 young managers in world football have been revealed

There are many experienced managers in the game, those who have seen it all and achieved all there is to achieve in football. However, in the modern game, more and more young managers are establishing themselves among the elite. Some have worked their way up to managing a big team by impressing in the lower leagues, while some have been lucky enough to have been allowed to manage in one of the biggest leagues in the world.

As Jurgen Klopp and Thomas Tuchel look set to depart at the end of the season, both the Liverpool and Bayern Munich jobs will be available, and the two sides will no doubt be eyeing up a number of up-and-coming managers to lead their next rebuild – indeed, one man on the list in Feyenoord boss Arne Slot is seemingly all set to take over the mantle at Anfield. This article will now detail the 10 best young managers in the world right now, with some of them already making a big splash in European football.

Ranking factors

• Major trophies won
• Impact at team
• Competitiveness of league they’re managing in
• Potential
• Must be below the age of 45

10 Arne Slot

Feyenoord

Propping up the list of best young managers in world football is the oldest, at 45 years old, Arne Slot. The Dutchman has so far only managed in his native country, impressing initially at AZ Alkmaar before being appointed Feyenoord manager ahead of the 2021/22 Eredivisie campaign. Slot guided Feyenoord to a third-placed finish during his first season in charge of the club, which was a considerable improvement on the previous season’s fifth-place finish. European football returned to De Kuip and supporters were unsurprisingly excited about the future of the club under the leadership of Slot.

That excitement had substance, as Feyenoord romped to the Eredivisie 2022/23 league title by seven points ahead of PSV Eindhoven. Feyenoord finished the season with 82 points, with the club only losing twice all season. Feyenoord’s triumph was their first league title since the 16/17 campaign, which made the success all the more remarkable. Slot has brought a free-flowing style of football to Feyenoord, a style that has seen the likes of Tottenham Hotspur previously show interest in the Dutchman. Slot has impressed during the 2023/24 campaign as well, with his side currently second in the Eredivisie, and it’s no surprise then that he is now the leading candidate to replace Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool.

9 Will Still

Stade de Reims

Born in Belgium to English parents, Still was a relative unknown when he was appointed the manager of Reims in October 2022, after being promoted from assistant manager, a position he had held since July 2021. Still gained a lot of attention in the media as he was only 30-years-old at the time of his appointment, and the club was fined €25,000 (£21,000) for every game he managed due to Still not holding a UEFA Pro License. In March 2023, Still revealed he had started the relevant course, resulting in no more fines being issued to Reims.

Related

Will Still: Reims fined €25,000 when talented young coach manages a game

Reims are fined £22,000 every time their manager Will Still takes charge of a match, but you can understand why the French club are happy to take the financial punishment.

Upon taking charge two months into the 2022/23 campaign, Still guided Reims to an 11th-placed finish. During that time, Still’s side went unbeaten for 17 games, setting a new Ligue 1 record in the process. The 2023/24 campaign saw Still take charge of his first full season in France’s top flight, and he has continued to impress. Reims currently sit in mid-table and arguably picked up their most impressive result of the campaign when they drew 2-2 away at Parc des Princes against PSG.

8 Francesco Farioli

OGC Nice

After a spell with Turkish side Alanyaspor, Farioli was appointed manager of OGC Nice ahead of the 2023/24 campaign. His move into management, like Still at Reims, was not the most conventional. The Italian studied philosophy and later sports science at university. Farioli began his career in football as a goalkeeper coach with Margine Coperta from 2009 to 2011.

In a league mainly dominated by Paris Saint-Germain, who have won seven out of the last nine league campaigns, Farioli has done a remarkable job at Nice, who currently sit in second place behind PSG. The achievement is all the more impressive when Nice finished in 9th place in the 2022/23 campaign, and their highest finish in the league since 2014/15 was third during the 2016/17 season.

7 Andoni Iraola

Bournemouth

Before Iraola’s appointment at Bournemouth ahead of the 2023/24 season, he became highly thought of in managerial circles for his work at Rayo Vallecano. During his time at Vallecano, he guided the club to promotion to La Liga in 2021, and in the 2022/23 campaign, Iraola led the club to the last four of the Copa del Rey. It was just the second time Vallecano had reached that stage of the competition, the first coming 40 years earlier. Iraola could have moved to Leeds United in February 2023, but Vallecano refused the Championship club permission to speak to their manager.

Iraola began his tenure at Bournemouth shakily, picking up their first win of the season in the league in their tenth match against Burnley on the 28th of October 2023. Since their first league win of the campaign, Bournemouth have impressed and have adapted well to Iraola’s methods, and are in with a real chance of a top-half finish during the 2023/24 season.

6 Vincent Kompany

Burnley

Changing Burnley’s style from what the previous manager, Sean Dyche, had drilled into the players for so long was always going to be a challenge for whoever replaced him. The former Manchester City captain, having previously impressed at Anderlecht, was deemed the right man for the job, and seen as someone who could lead the club back to the Premier League following their relegation to the Championship during the 2021/22 campaign.

With any relegation, there are several changes within a football club to balance out the financial loss of dropping down a league. If Burnley supporters had any nerves leading into their season in the Championship, they needn’t have worried. Kompany led the club to the Championship title in some style, as Burnley lost just three games all season and broke the 100-point mark, finishing the season on 101 points. Burnley became only the sixth side to reach 100 points or more in a Championship season during what was a stunning campaign. Kompany and Burnley have found their return to the Premier League difficult, and they have a fight on their hands to stay up.

5 Edin Terzic

Borussia Dortmund

Terzic played over 100 games in the fourth level of German football, before working as a scout and assistant coach for Borussia Dortmund’s youth team. He then became Slaven Bilic’s assistant manager in 2012 for Croatia and followed Bilic to Besiktas and West Ham United in the same role.

In 2018, Terzic returned to Borussia Dortmund to become assistant to head coach Lucien Favre and later became interim manager of the side in December 2020 after Favre was sacked. Terzic impressed during his time as interim manager with a win percentage of 62.50%, leading Dortmund to a third-placed finish before becoming manager permanently. Consecutive second-placed finishes followed, with the latter resulting in the heartbreak of missing out on the Bundesliga title to Bayern Munich on goal difference, as both sides finished the season on 71 points. Borussia Dortmund have found life more difficult in the 2023/24 campaign, currently sitting in fourth place, behind Stuttgart, Bayern Munich and leaders Bayer Leverkusen.

4 Julian Nagelsmann

Germany

Arguably the biggest name on the list and one of the most sought-after managers in football today. Nagelsmann began his managerial career at TSG Hoffenheim ahead of the 2016/17 campaign, leading them to an impressive 4th-placed finish, a distinct improvement on the previous season, which resulted in a 15th-placed finish. Third and ninth-placed finishes followed as Nagelsmann began to establish himself as one of the best young managers around.

His record with Hoffenheim led to RB Leipzig appointing him as their manager ahead of the 2019/20 season, a season when they reached the Champions League semi-finals and a third-placed finish in the league. He led Leipzig one better during the 2020/21 campaign as Nagelsmann guided the club to a second-placed finish, twelve points behind leaders, Bayern Munich. Nagelsmann would eventually end up at the Allianz Arena, as the German giants appointed him as manager ahead of the 2021/22 season.

He won the league and German Super Cup during his first season in charge and won the latter competition again in his second season before being sacked midway through the season, with Bayern just one point behind leaders Borussia Dortmund at the time. His dismissal was made all the more bizarre when Nagelsmann’s record at Bayern finished with an astounding 71.4% win rate. In September 2023, Nagelsmann was appointed as Germany’s manager and will manage the team in his first major tournament at Euro 2024.

3 Ruben Amorim

Sporting Lisbon

The manager who has been linked with the likes of Liverpool and West Ham, Amorim started his managerial career at Braga, where he won the Portuguese League Cup during his only season in charge of the club in the 2019/20 campaign. His impressive record at Braga attracted interest from Sporting Lisbon, and Amorim was appointed their manager ahead of the 2020/21 season.

His first season in charge of Sporting Lisbon was a special one, leading the club to their first league title in 19 years, and Amorim also lifted the Portuguese League Cup for the second consecutive season. In total, Amorim has won five trophies during his short time as a manager, winning the Portuguese League Cup three times, one league title, and one Portuguese Super Cup. Should his stock rise further, there will undoubtedly be a high-profile move on the cards for him.

2 Mikel Arteta

Arsenal

After a three-year stint as Pep Guardiola’s assistant at Manchester City, Arteta became manager of Arsenal in December 2019 and began his managerial career in first-team football. It has led to a turnaround in fortunes for Arsenal, who are no longer considered as just a challenger for a top-four position but a challenger for the Premier League title.

During his first season in charge at the Emirates, Arteta led Arsenal to FA Cup glory at the end of the 2019/20 campaign. An eighth and fifth-placed finish followed as the Spaniard began to mould the Gunners into a side capable of pushing Manchester City for the Premier League title. They came so close to doing just that in the 2022/23 season, finishing second and five points behind Pep Guardiola’s treble-winning side. It was also Arsenal’s highest finish in the league since finishing second behind Leicester City during the 2015/16 season. The Gunners are firmly in the title race in the 2023/24 campaign, and it speaks volumes to the kind of progression they have enjoyed under Arteta since his arrival. A Premier League title sooner or later would cement his status as one of the most exciting young managers in football.

Related

Arsenal: Remembering the forgotten members of their 2003/04 Invincibles team

Who are the forgotten members of Arsenal’s Invincibles team?

1 Xabi Alonso

Bayer Leverkusen

After starting his managerial career as a youth coach at Real Madrid, and later taking charge of Real Sociedad’s B team, Alonso was handed his first opportunity to manage in top-level football when he was appointed manager of Beyer Leverkusen in October 2022. After taking the reigns two months into the season, Alonso impressed with his style of play and led the club to a respectable 6th-placed finish.

All eyes were on Leverkusen and Alonso heading into the 2023/24 campaign with a sense of uncertainty about what they could achieve during the season. The former Liverpool midfielder has exceeded all and any expectations that were placed upon him before the season’s opening-day win against RB Leipzig. Leverkusen’s incredible form – they remain unbeaten even at this stage – has seen them lift their first ever Bundesliga title, their first trophy since 1993. They also knocked out West Ham in the quarter-finals of the Europa League too, so have a very real chance of clinching another trophy. It’s no surprise then that Alonso is ranked as the most exciting young manager in world football right now.

All stats taken from Transfermarkt