The 2023/24 league seasons are winding down and the Champions League quarterfinals are on the horizon. Enough matches have been played to where it gets easier to compare managers and judge performances, even across different leagues.
Who have been the best managers of the 2023/24 season, solely based on current performance? Let’s rank the top five options and see which names deserve more credit and which big managers have been knocked off the list.
5. Mikel Arteta, Arsenal
Mikel Arteta has Arsenal one point ahead of Pep Guardiola going into Sunday’s big-ticket Premier League clash at the Etihad, which will see the title on the line.
A former protege of Pep’s as an assistant at City, Arteta is trying to surpass the master and already came so close last season before a late collapse. Arsenal look stronger this year, even beating City to Declan Rice on the transfer market.
4. Simone Inzaghi, Inter Milan
Inter Milan are running away with the Serie A title, as Simone Inzaghi continues to entrench his status as the best coach in Italian football, having the honor essentially cleared for him when Luciano Spalletti left Napoli to coach the national team.
Inzaghi has found a better player for cheaper, even if he isn’t as big of a name, to replace Lukaku in French all-arounder Marcus Thuram. The connection between Thuram and Lautaro Martínez has been unbeatable in front of an organized midfield that remains the benchmark in Serie A.
3. Michel, Girona
Girona are the darling of European football right now, though they should have been on everyone’s radar last season when Michel was cooking up an innovative, multi-faceted attack with fully free-flowing positions.
A fully legitimate Champions League side for the 2024/25 season, Girona are capable of taking down any team in European football, including parent club Manchester City. What makes Girona tick is the innovation and man-management of Michel, who should be more coveted than many of the big names being linked to jobs like Barcelona’s, Liverpool’s, and Bayern Munich’s.
2. Carlo Ancelotti, Real Madrid
Carlo Ancelotti is the most respected manager in the world. He treats his players with love and care, showing that a manager can be best friends with his squad while still achieving greatness. The full extent of Real Madrid’s magic seems to be unlocked by the wonderful Carletto, who has helped the likes of Vinícius Júnior, Rodrygo Goes, and Jude Bellingham grow even more as attacking superstars.
