Magnificent seven

Great bosses who never won Euro Cup

RAY HARPER asks if winning Europe’s most famous club trophy is the true barometer of brilliance

In the current era, it’s widely acknowledged that winning the European Cup is the gold standard of managerial achievement. At the highest level, it’s difficult to see a manager as a ‘top, top’ manager when he does not have a Champions League title on his CV.Yet, there is an illustrious list of managers who could definitely be regarded as greats, but who have never won the European Cup.

1. Bill Shankly

The man who shaped and built the massive club that Liverpool became, and laid the foundations for later successes. Before Shankly, Everton were the dominant team in the city. After him, there were only two teams on Merseyside – Liverpool and Liverpool Reserves. Shankly won key promotions, multiple league titles, and nailed the 1973 UEFA Cup.The closest he came to triumph in the European Cup was in 1965, when his side were robbed in a controversial semi-final against Inter Milan, losing 3-0 in Milan after winning 3-1 at Anfield. But for this, he would probably have become the first British manager to win the European cup.

2. arsene wenger

Arsene Wenger gave the English game two double-winning sides, and the 2004 ‘Invincibles’. He also radically changed the Premier League’s approach to sports science, diet and player fitness. Perhaps his greatest achievements as a manager came when he nurtured great world-class talents at Arsenal – Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp et al. He came agonisingly close in 2006, when his 10-man side held out for 80-odd minutes against Barcelona in the final, before succumbing 2-1. A semi-final in 2008 followed, but in reality he has never come closer to winning the European Cup than that evening in Paris in May 2006.

3. Bill nicholson

In 1963, Bill Nicholson led Tottenham to the Cup Winners Cup, becoming the first British team to win a major European trophy.The 1972 UEFA Cup followed, and he also won the first ‘Double’ of the 20th Century in 1961, immortalised in Those Glory Glory Days. Like Shankly, the furthest he got was a 1962 semi-final – this one against Benfica.

4. Bobby robson

A true football legend, and widely respected across all strata of the game. He led England to World Cup quarter-finals in 1986 and semi-finals in 1990, and won league titles in Holland and Portugal. A Cup Winners Cup win with Barcelona in 1997, and an incredible UEFA Cup win with Ipswich (1981) mark him out as a well-rounded European manager. He had a few cracks at the Champions League, but never made it past the early rounds – with group stage finishes with Porto (1995/96), PSV (1998/99), and a second round finish in 1991/92 with PSV. Newcastle’s run to the second group stage in 2002/03 was probably the peak of his European Cup experience. He has to be considered one of the greats due to the breadth of his achievements and silverware, and his ability to get the best out of sometimes very average players.

5. jim mClean

In a period when the Old Firm and an Alex Ferguson-led Aberdeen were dominating Scottish football, Jim McLean led Dundee United to the title in 1982/83, and four consecutive third-placed finishes. The closest he came was the 1983/84 European Cup semi-final, which Dundee lost 3-2 on aggregate to AS Roma. Like Shankly’s 1965 semi-final in Italy, this finished in contro-

versial fashion, with a penalty deciding the tie. Had they won, they would have faced Liverpool in the final. His European prowess was proven in 1986/87 with Dundee United finishing runners-up to IFK Gothenburg in the UEFA Cup.

6. tomislav ivic

Ivic won seven top-flight league titles across five countries (Yugoslavia, Greece, Netherlands, Belgium, Portugal) in the 1970s and 1980s, and is often a neglected manager. The closest he came was managing Anderlecht in the 1981/82 semi-final against an Aston Villa side who went on to win the European Cup.

7. franz beckenbauer

One of only two men to win the World Cup as a coach and player, Beckenbauer won the Bundesliga and UEFA Cup with Bayern Munich in the 1990s. In proportion to the years he managed, those three trophies stand out impressively. It’s also easy to forget that he took West Germany to the 1986 World Cup final. If he had managed more widely and had a crack at the Champions League, who knows what else he might have achieved?

The list of managerial greats could go on. The evolution of European competitions has perhaps redefined ‘greatness’. In the days before the Champions League emerged, winning the UEFA Cup was almost an equal achievement. And before European competitions started, domestic leagues were the barometer of success. Yes, great managers win the European Cup, but many haven’t, and many will continue to miss out. Coming at this from a different angle, who would genuinely rank Roberto Di Matteo above Bill Shankly?