Today, Igor Tudor was fired as Tottenham manager after only 44 days and 7 games, which was even more temporary than planned. – At the opposite end of the scale, the world’s highest-paid manager, Diego Simeone, can make this honorable list of those who have been at the same club the longest.
In recent days, there has been a lot of speculation about Diego’s renewal. If completed, the Argentine strategist will retain his place as the active manager with the most years as manager of the same team, and he will be very close to entering the 10 coaches with the longest tenure at the same club ever.
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10.Thomas Schaff, Werder Bremen (14 years)
A man who was born to be history at Werder Bremen. There he went from youth coach to head coach of the first team in 1999. He saved the club from relegation, and just a month later he won the German Cup as a strategist.
In the 2003–04 season, they won the local tournament and the DFB-Pokal, making Bremer a stable team in the UEFA Champions League.
9.Miguel Muñoz, Real Madrid (14 years)
He made his debut as a coach in 1959 and became the first strategist to win the European Cup both as a player and coach. He also managed to win nine leagues, two European Cups, two Generalissimo Cups, and one Intercontinental Cup.
He also coached Granada, Las Palmas and Seville, and then took over the management of the Spanish national team in 1982. They finished second at the 1984 European Championships, reached the quarter-finals in 1986 and participated in the European Championships a few years later. Unfortunately for him, he never managed to win a title as coach of Spain.
8.Valery Vasilyevich Lobanovsky, Kyiv Dynamo (16 years)
The footballer in question made his debut as a strategist in Dnipro, before returning to Dynamo Kiev in 1974. In this team, Valeri marked an era. His Russian hegemony in Soviet football kept him at the top for almost two decades, during which time he won eight leagues, six cups, two European Cup Winners’ Cups, and one European Super Cup. With the Soviet Union, he won Olympic bronze in 1976 and finished second in the 1988 European Championships.
7.Foppe de Haan, Heerenveen (17 years)
Foppe de Haan established himself as a coach at the helm in Heerenveen. He took over as the team’s technical director in 1992, after an outstanding participation in the team’s youth team. Already in the senior draw, he was promoted to the Eredivisie in 1993 and came close to winning the championship in 2000.
However, this defeat brought great comfort. And that made them qualify for the UEFA Champions League. Between 2006 and 2007, he won a couple of European Championships, and was the strategist for the Netherlands U21 team.
6.Frank Schmidt, Heidenheim (18 years)
He joined the team in 2007 and has since served as CTO, achieving a total transformation of the institution’s DNA. He arrived as a temporary, but based on the results, he consolidated himself in their respective departments.
In 2023, he completed the long-awaited promotion to the Bundesliga and qualified them for the first time in European competitions.
5.Arsène Wenger, Arsenal (22 years)
Arguably one of the most influential coaches in modern football. He started with Nancy, won the French league with Monaco in 1988, and in 1991 he created a great legacy in Japan with the Nagoya Grampus.
It was
however, not until 1996 that he joined Arsenal and created a great legacy. With the Londoners, he lifted an important series of championships and established a methodology that still today receives a lot of attention when it comes to the preparation and development of footballers.
4.Alex Ferguson, Manchester United (27 years)
He began to shine in Scotland, with Saint Mirren and Aberdeen, ending the dominance of Celtic and Rangers. He then jumped up to the Premier League and won it all with Manchester United.
From 1983 to 2013, Alex Fergunson won leagues, cups, the Champions League and reached a historic treble in 1999. He reinvented himself on several occasions, promoting figures such as Cantona, Beckham, Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo.
He retired in 2013, and since then, Manchester United has not been the protagonist who had the powers that longed for him… and feared him.
3.Ronnie McFall, Portadown (30 years)
A coach who prioritized the stability of his teams achieved high levels of opposition and awakened a great loyalty in them. A historic player in Portadown, his hometown, and where he trained for almost 30 years. Beyond the spotlight and championships, Ronnie McFall stands out with his broad identity.
2.Guy Roux, Auxerre (42 years)
Roux and Auxerre, a man and a club that was born to be yourself. He managed the team from 1961 to 2005, taking them from a modest French football squad to a regular reference in one of Europe’s top leagues.
With him on the bench, Auxerre won Ligue 1 in the 1995-96 season and won four French Cups.
1.Willie Maley, Celtic Glasgow (43 years)
The first coach of a very successful club, like Celtic. Without a doubt, a giant in Scotland. With him on the bench, the team won a total of 30 titles, in 16 league championships and 14 Scottish cups. He was at the helm for 43 consecutive years, and his legacy was immortalized in Celtic’s motto: It’s not your creed or your nationality that counts; It is man himself.
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