Skip to main content

The Ex-Goalkeepers Turning Successful Managers Outside the Top Leagues

Image
By

 


Several notable former goalkeepers who thrive as managers from outside the European top leagues deserve recognition.

The goalkeeper position has often been underrated despite its crucial role in football defence, especially in the past. Goalies tend to be deemed less likely to succeed when they become managers.

Being a tactician demands the ability to read the game in their playing career. Thus, the best head coaches are normally the former midfielders or defenders. The likes of Pep Guardiola, Carlo Ancelotti, Luis Enrique, Zinedine Zidane, Jurgen Klopp, and Thomas Tuchel are the proven examples, as they all used to operate from the second line or backline and get involved in the attacking build-up.

However, it does not mean that former shot-stoppers is bound to fail in their managerial career. Some manage to shine as well when they are in the dugout. Julen Lopetegui, Nuno Santo, Dino Zoff, and Raymond Goethals are the popular examples. They have been frequently discussed due to their career in the major European top flights. Yet, they are not the only ones. Some others from outside the top leagues deserve the spotlight too. Here are those ex-goalkeepers turning remarkable managers you did not know:

Michael Preud'Homme

The current Standard Liege Sporting Director had a fairly successful managerial career. The former Belgian goalie in the 1990 and 1994 FIFA World Cup had won silverwares in every club he took charge of. He won the Belgian league title twice, one for Standard Liege in 2008 and one for Club Brugge in 2016. Preud-Homme also lifted a Belgian Cup trophy with Gent, and helped them finish second, their highest ever position in the club’s history.

His spells in the Netherlands and Saudi Arabia also left a good mark. Once again, the former Benfica key man between the sticks clinched the title: the Dutch KNVB Cup with Twente in 2011 and the Saudi top flight title with Al Shabab in 2012. His second spell in Liege as a head coach was fantastic too, as they clinched two other silverwares beside the league title, the Belgian Cup and the Super Cup, in 2015 and 2016, respectively.

Preud’Homme is one of the living legend in Belgian football. He won the Lev Yashin Award, the accolade for the best goalkeeper in the 1994 FIFA World Cup, and was part of Belgium’s squad while reaching UEFA EURO 1980 final.

Stanislav Cherchesov

The former Russian head coach was able to raise the profile of the Russian national team in the 2018 FIFA World Cup. His side surprisingly knocked out Spain to advance to the quarterfinals before losing to Croatia on penalties. That was Russia’s best form in World Cup history since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Previously, Russia always failed to progress from the group stage under a local manager in all major tournaments, in Euro 1992, 1996, 2004, and 2016 as well as in the 1994, 2002, and 2014 FIFA World Cup.Russia's greatest form on the international stage was at Euro 2008. At that time, Andre Arshavin and Co advanced to the semi-finals with the legendary Guus Hiddink at the helm of the team.

Cherchesov, who appeared once at the 1994 World Cup (against Cameroon) and twice in Euro 1996 (at the same time as Italy and the Czech Republic), left the post in Sbornaya after the delayed EURO 2020 in summer 2021. Alexander Golovin and Co. failed miserably in their campaign.

At the club level, he successfully brought Legia Warsaw to win the double titles, the league, and the Polish Cup in 2016. The former Spartak Moscow goalie also led Ferencvaros to clinch the Hungarian top-flight title consecutively in 2022 and 2023.

Rafael Dudamel

He was the ex-goalie in the 1990s and 2000s. The Venezuelan boss is one of the most underrated managers in South America today. Dudamel’s most important achievement was guiding the Venezuela U20 to reach the final in the 2017 U20 World Cup. Yangel Herrera and Co. only lost 1-0 in the final against England U20. In the previous year, he helped Venezuela knock out Uruguay at the group stage of the Copa America 2016 but suffered a heavy loss against Lionel Messi’s Argentina in the last eight. At the club level, the former Atletico Mineiro and Mexico’s Nexaca boss finally won his first silverware, the Colombian top flight title with Deportivo Cali, in 2022.

Jorge Fossati

The current Peru national team boss was also a goalkeeper during his playing years. He earned three caps with the Uruguay national team back in the mid-1970s and mid-1980s. Fossati has won several notable silverwares at the club level, with one league title each for Penarol, the Ecuador’s LDU Quito, Paraguay’s Cerro Porteno, and most recently Peru’s Universitario de Deportes. The former La Celeste manager also snatched two continental titles with LDU Quito, the Recopa Sundamericana (or CONMEBOL’s Super Cup) and the Copa Sundamericana, which is equal to the Europa League in 2009. He also led Qatari side Al Sadd to win the AFC Champions League in 2011.

Ricardo LaVolpe

The former Mexico boss from 2002 to 2006 succeeded in leading El Sombrero to fourth place in the FIFA rankings in themid-2000s, their highest position in history. The Argentine manager also won the 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup, brought Mexico to the semifinals in the 2005 Confederations Cup, and reach the round of 16 in the 2006 World Cup. At the club level, Argentina’s second shot-stopper in the 1978 World Cup guided Atlante to lift the 1993 MX League trophy.

Bruce Arena

The former USMNT boss is definitely one of the most successful ones from outside Europe. Arena spent most of his career in the home soil. He won the MLS Cup five times for DC United (twice) and LA Galaxy (three times), plus the CONCACAF Champions Cup in 1998 with DC United. On the international stage, Arena led the USMNT to clinch the CONCACAF Gold Cup title twice and also guided Landon Donovan and Co. to advance to the quarterfinals of the 2002 FIFA World Cup in his first spell. In his second stint, the former goalkeeper with one international cap won his third continental title but resigned soon after USA failed to seal a berth in the 2018 World Cup.


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

U20 World Cup 1997: The First with 24 Teams

By
  The 1997 U20 World Cup in Malaysia marked a new era for FIFA’s youth showpiece, with a significant expansion in the number of participants.   For the first time, the tournament grew from 16 to 24 teams, a format that remains to this day. It also meant the knockout stages began in the round of 16, with the four best third-placed sides joining the top two from each group. The 1997 Tournament in Numbers   * Played between 16 June and 5 July. * Six host cities: Shah Alam, Kuantan, Kangar, Johor Bahru, Alor Setar and Kuching. * With the exception of UEFA, every confederation was handed more slots. Asia, Africa and CONCACAF doubled their representation from two to four, while South America gained one extra spot. Oceania, meanwhile, received an automatic berth. * Four debutants made the stage: Belgium, South Africa, the UAE and hosts Malaysia. Argentina Won Back-to-Back Argentina followed in the footsteps of Brazil and Portugal by becoming just the third nat...
Post a Comment
Read more

1991 FIFA U-20 World Cup: A One-of-a-Kind Edition

By
  The 1991 FIFA U-20 World Cup was unlike any other, marked by unique circumstances surrounding the host nation and the wider historical events of the era. Unprecedented factors defined the tournament: the surprising performance of teams from Oceania and Asia, extraordinary political developments, and, most notably, the appointment of defending champions Portugal as hosts. To this day, they remain the only reigning champions to have staged the U-20 World Cup—or any FIFA World Cup.  Originally, Nigeria had been awarded hosting rights, but the country was stripped of the tournament after being found guilty of age falsification involving three players at the 1988 Olympic Games. FIFA suspended Nigeria for two years, removing them from international football and transferring hosting rights to Portugal. Key Facts – 1991 Tournament * Held from 14 to 30 June, with 16 teams split into four groups. * Matches were staged in Porto, Lisbon, Braga, Guimarães and Faro. * For the fi...
Post a Comment
Read more

FIFA U20 World Cup 1999: The Birth of Spain’s Golden Generation

By
The 1999 U20 World Cup marked a defining moment in Spanish football — the birth of the golden generation that would go on to dominate world football in the late 2000s and early 2010s. Held in Nigeria, the tournament proved to be a lucky charm for La Furia Roja . It was on African soil that Xavi Hernández and his teammates lifted Spain’s first-ever U20 World Cup trophy — and, 11 years later, Spain would once again conquer the world at the senior level in South Africa 2010. Alongside Xavi, future World Cup winners Iker Casillas and Pablo Marchena also played key roles in Nigeria 1999. Facts and Figures   The 1999 FIFA U20 World Cup came with several notable highlights. Here are some of the key details from the long-awaited tournament finally staged in Nigeria after two postponements: * The competition took place from April 3 to April 24. * Eight cities hosted the matches: Ibadan, Lagos, Enugu, Port Harcourt, Kano, Calabar, Kaduna, and Bauchi. * Zambia, Kazakhstan, and Cr...
Post a Comment
Read more