The Premier League has played host to some of the greatest football managers of all time over the years – but which are the best? Today, we’ll look to find out.
In this list, we will only be taking Premier League achievements into account. Accomplishments in other competitions, such as the Champions League, FA Cup and League Cup won’t be considered.
Carlo Ancelotti
Some may have expected Jurgen Klopp to occupy this spot. This is a valid thought process, but we think Carlo Ancelotti just edges the former Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund head coach out. It took Klopp five years to win the Premier League title – Ancelotti did it in one.
Boasting a win percentage of 61.47% during his time at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea scored 103 goals during the 2009/10, beating out Manchester United in a competitive title race. He was sacked at the end of the following season, but we can excuse this – few survived Roman Abramovich’s happy trigger finger.
After this, Ancelotti enjoyed a positive spell with Everton in 2019 through to 2021. The Toffees were a basket case club at the time, facing problems on and off the pitch, but the current Brazil boss still managed to win 31 of his 67 games in charge at Goodison Park.
Arsene Wenger
It fees harsh to leave Arsene Wenger outside of the top three. The former Arsenal man revolutionised Premier League football – he is also the only Premier League manager to have led an ‘invincible’ season.
Nevertheless, we cannot ignore – or excuse – Wenger’s inability to adapt to the changing footballing landscape of the time. This led him into a period of regression, which kicked off a lengthy barren spell of trophies for the Gunners during the second half of his tenure.
Ultimately, Wenger’s Arsenal tenure is a story of two halves. A trailblazing, daring winner in the first – by the second, his methods were found somewhat lacking. Nevertheless, Wenger remains one of the greatest managers in football history – not just in the Premier League.
Jose Mourinho
For us, Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger are neck-and-neck. However, when the two managers played each other, Mourinho generally came out on top – in our eyes, this gives him the edge over his eternal rival.
In many ways, Mourinho was Wenger’s antithesis. While Wenger looked to play expansive, exciting football, Mourinho kept things simple, applying a style similar to the modern ‘Catenaccio’ approach used by top Italian teams of the era.
In the 2004/05, 2005/06 and 2006/07 seasons, Chelsea conceded just 61 Premier League goals over the course of three seasons – for reference, they have already let in 38 in 2025/26 alone. On top of this, Mourinho also won the Premier League title again on his return to Stamford Bridge – just don’t ask him about his Tottenham tenure.
Pep Guardiola
Pep Guardiola has won six Premier League titles – only one other manager has managed to eclipse this number. We’ll get to him soon enough – for now, let’s turn our attention to the best Premier League manager of the last ten years.
Guardiola has spent more on Premier League player transfers than any other head coach on this list, but we won’t begrudge him for making use of his resources – especially when the results of his spending are taken into consideration.
His win percentage of 70.2% is higher than anyone else’s in this list at one Premier League club. A meticulous perfectionist, Guardiola’s depth of tactical knowledge is utterly peerless.
Alex Ferguson
Who else? Alex Ferguson isn’t just the greatest Premier League manager of all time – he might be the best manager in the history of football.
Ferguson transformed Manchester United into the biggest club in the world during his time at Old Trafford. With 13 Premier League titles to his name, his position at the top of this list is not up for debate.
Ferguson’s man-management was his best attribute – his tactics didn’t change much throughout his lengthy coaching career, but his man-management has been praised by a number of his former players.
