Ranking the managers of the 'big six'

By Josh Graham

You can have a Premier League side packed full of stars but if the man at the helm is not hitting the mark you cannot expect to be lifting trophies.

 In the toughest league of the world, it’s a dog-eat-dog world when it comes to managerial chopping and changings and no more so among the traditional ‘big six’ clubs.

 

Here we rank the incumbents in charge at Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham. 

 

1, Pep Guardiola 

 

The Manchester City boss is a colossal figure when it comes to football management, having dominated the game at Barcelona, Bayern Munich and now at the Etihad. 

 

Famed for rotating players in an irritating fashion for fantasy football players, a trait that has been coined ‘Pep roulette’, the Spaniard is revered globally for his tactics and tinkering. 

 

The three-time Premier League manager of the season has helped turn City into a genuine European giant and all that remains is that elusive Champions League trophy.

 

Guardiola has scooped a remarkable 31 trophies, meaning he is a no-brainer for No.1 boss in our list of contenders. 

 

2, Jurgen Klopp

 

Jurgen Klopp has restored the glory years to Anfield since his appointment in 2015.

 

The German has revitalised the Reds and moulded a team expertly in his image, most notably ending Liverpool’s 30-year wait for a top-flight title in 2020.

 

The 54-year-old took his side to the pinnacle of Europe when they beat Tottenham in the Champions League final in 2019 and the German maestro has nothing left to prove to most.

 

A solid choice at No.2 in our rankings of the Big Six bosses.

 

3, Thomas Tuchel

 

Has anyone ever made more of an impact at a club than Thomas Tuchel?

 

Chelsea’s saviour emerged after the axing of club legend Frank Lamaprd, who admittedly did help lay many of the good foundations.

 

Tuchel was appointed in January and four months later had delivered the Champions League, getting the better of Guardiola in Porto. 

 

It was the stuff of dreams for the Blues and the fairytale Tuchel era is continuing with Chelsea currently sitting pretty at the top of the Premier Leauge.

 

Not bad from the man who was only offered an 18-month contract after leaving PSG, perhaps if anything he can consider himself hard done by to only slot in at No.3, at least on recent form.

 

4, Antonio Conte

 

He may now be at Tottenham but Antonio Conte has shown his Premier League pedigree with rivals Chelsea, winning the 2016-17 title.

 

The following year he scooped the FA Cup and the Italian manager has gone on to enhance his reputation in his home country.

 

From 2011 to 2014, Conte steered Juventus to a hat-trick of Serie A triumphs but perhaps even more impressively he was the one to break the Bianconeri’s stranglehold on the league with Inter Milan last season.

 

The repairing job at Spurs is a mammoth task but if anyone is capable of undertaking it and delivering the goods, you’d bet Conte can given his impressive track record.

 

5, Ralf Rangnick

 

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s doomed reign at Old Trafford is finally over and Ralf Rangnick is the man whisked in to do the job in the interim. 

 

The 63-year-old has been lured from Lokomotiv Moscow and has had previous success in charge of Hoffenheim and during two spells at Schalke.

 

Rangnick was director of football at RB Leipzig as they soared from the German fourth division to the Bundesliga and it is his prominence behind the frontline which explains why he slots in further down our list.

 

Rangnick is steering the ship until the end of the season but will take up a two-year consultancy where he is expected to improve the way United to do things, a vital role for the Red Devils who have been sliding ever since Sir Alex Ferguson retired.

 

6, Mikel Arteta

 

The former Arsenal player is now the man in charge at the Emirates but has no management experience to speak of aside from being Guardiola’s No.2 at City.

 

Arteta had a sticky start to life in North London as the boss but seems to be turning things around this season despite losing the first three games. 

 

The Spaniard has also picked up the 2019/20 FA Cup title, beating Chelsea in the final, so should certainly not be written off.

 

He does have time on his side but few could argue he deserves to be bottom of this list.

Photo Credit: Getty Images