The best and worst managerial appointments of 2026
There have been a handful of managerial appointments across Europe in 2026, including game-changers and a few head-scratching decisions that have gone horribly off script.
While some have transformed the fortunes of their clubs, others have somehow left their current employers in a worse state than when they first arrived.
Read on as we rank the managerial appointments in 2026 from absolutely horrendous to a breath of fresh air.
Eric Ramsay – West Bromwich Albion
You’d be hard pressed to find a more ill-fated managerial appointment than West Bromwich Albion’s decision to bring in Eric Ramsay as replacement for Ryan Mason.
The former Manchester United coach kick-started his managerial career at Major League Soccer (MLS) club Minnesota United in the United States.
That should have been the first red flag for West Brom, but their desire to get rid of Mason must have blinded them during the vetting process.
Unsurprisingly, Ramsay was sacked after just 44 days in the dugout. He failed to win any of his nine games in charge and left the Baggies one point above the Championship relegation zone.
For context, they were seven points above the drop zone when he was brought in to salvage the season.
Igor Tudor – Tottenham Hotspur
Like Ramsay, Igor Tudor also spent just 44 days in the Tottenham Hotspur dugout. But at least he can boast of one win in his seven games in charge.
The Croatian came in with a reputation as one of the best firefighters in Europe, with Tottenham desperate to repair the damage done by Thomas Frank.
However, it took Tudor one match to go from being optimistic about reversing their fortunes to ripping into the club’s lack of ambition and questioning his own life’s choices.
Tudor had his moments. The spirited draw against Liverpool and the inconsequential victory against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League were decent highlights.
But he ended up getting swallowed up by what is now an almost unsalvageable sinking ship.
Liam Rosenior – Chelsea
Liam Rosenior won seven of his first nine games (L2) after replacing Enzo Maresca at Chelsea, with those two defeats coming against Arsenal in the EFL Cup semi-final.
His fast start to life at Chelsea seemed to vindicate the board’s decision, but the past few months have shown that his early success was all smoke and mirrors.
Since a 3-1 victory against Wolverhampton Wanderers in early February, Chelsea have won just four out of 12 games in all competitions (D2, L6).
Three of those wins came against Championship and League One opponents in the FA Cup.
During that run, Chelsea crashed out of the Champions League after losing 8-2 on aggregate to Paris Saint-Germain.
The Blues have also lost five of their last six games, including three in a row in the Premier League, which has severely dented their chances of securing Champions League football.
Rosenior has proven time and again that he’s out of his depth at Chelsea. He used to be Wayne Rooney’s assistant manager at Derby County. Make of that what you will.
Alvaro Arbeloa – Real Madrid
Real Madrid are paying the price for failing to back a proven winner in Xabi Alonso and pandering to player power by replacing him with Alvaro Arbeloa.
Two months ago, Los Blancos were leading the perennial two-way La Liga title race after capitalising on Barcelona’s loss to Girona with a thumping 4-1 victory over Real Sociedad that took them to first place.
However, the picture at the top of the table has changed drastically with Girona returning to disrupt one of the giants once again, this time holding Madrid to a 1-1 draw at Santiago Bernabeu.
That result has effectively ended Madrid’s hopes of reclaiming the title.
With one foot out of the Champions League after a 2-1 quarter-final first-leg defeat against Bayern Munich, Los Blancos only have themselves to blame for the way the campaign has turned out.
Vitor Pereira – Nottingham Forest
Only Nottingham Forest have appointed more managers than Tottenham this season, with Vitor Pereira the fourth head coach to lead the Tricky Trees in what has been a chaotic campaign.
That only proves how desperate Forest are in their quest to stay in the Premier League and interestingly, Pereira is on course to do just that.
Pereira’s appointment initially fell under the head-scratching category, considering how his tenure at Wolves panned out.
But after a slow start to life at Forest, he appears to finally be turning things around. Forest are unbeaten in their last five games in all competitions (W2, D3).
They also haven’t suffered defeat in four Premier League games (W1, D3), leaving them in 16th place on the table, three points above the drop zone with six games left.
Pereira also has Forest one game away from a Europa League semi-final following a 1-1 draw against Porto in the quarter-final first leg.
Michael Carrick – Manchester United
No managerial appointment has had more of an impact in 2026 than Michael Carrick who has completely transformed Manchester United and reestablished them as a “Big Six” club.
United were in seventh place when Carrick was appointed as United’s interim manager following the departure of Ruben Amorim, and he has done remarkably well.
The Red Devils have picked up more Premier League points than any other team in the league since Carrick’s arrival, leading to several calls for the Englishman’s appointment to be made permanent.
Carrick kicked off his tenure with back-to-back wins against Manchester City and Arsenal and has lost just two of his 11 Premier League games in charge (W7, D2).
That run of form has seen United surge up to third place in the table and are almost guaranteed a place in the Champions League with just six games left.
Honourable mention
Roberto De Zerbi – Tottenham Hotspur
The fact that Tottenham Hotspur are facing a real prospect of relegation is one of the most unexpected plot lines of the 2025/26 campaign.
Desperate to turn their fortunes around, Tottenham have turned to Roberto De Zerbi to keep them up but the Italian hasn’t had the best start to life in North London.
De Zerbi kicked off his tenure with a 1-0 defeat against Sunderland as Tottenham continued to sink into what would be a catastrophic outcome for the ninth richest club in the world.
Spurs are just two points off 17th-placed West Ham United, so they’re not dead in the water yet.
However, De Zerbi has just six more games to pull Tottenham out of the bottom three and finally secure the club’s first Premier League victory in 2026.