Sir Alex Ferguson, Sir Bobby Robson, Carlo Ancelotti: Five bosses who were sacked early in their careers but improved
THINGS look bleak for Gary Neville right
now.
The great hope for young, English
managers was sacked by Valencia — and
it’s back to drawing board.
Where next?
Well, judging by some of his predecessors,
there are still quite a few options available
for the England coach.
Some of the greatest managers around
bounced back from an early sacking in
their careers.
Neville should have a glance at some of
these.
SunSport looks at five managers who lost
their jobs early on in their careers — and
then went on to impress as managers of
big clubs.
Sir Bobby Robson
Sir Bobby Robson with Ronaldo during his
spell in charge of Barcelona
THE loveable Englishman was dismissed
from his first role as manager — by Fulham
in 1968.
The West London side were relegated and
Robson lost his job.
He only found out about the decision
when he saw the headline ‘Robson sacked’
in the local newspaper.
However, the he recovered spectacularly.
Robson took over at Ipswich a year later
and led club to FA Cup and Uefa Cup
success.
Named England boss in 1982, he led the
Three Lions to the quarter-finals and semi-
finals — the best result since victory in
1966 — in the 1986 and 1990 World Cups.
Robson went onto win titles in Holland
and Portugal as well as the Spanish Cup
and Cup Winners’ Cup with Barcelona.
Sir Alex Ferguson
Sir Alex Ferguson actually took St Mirren to
a tribunal for unfair dimissal after his
sacking
The greatest manager in British history was
indeed sacked by St Mirren in 1978 — in
only his second role in football.
Fergie had been offered the job as boss of
Aberdeen in 1977, but turned it down.
Billy McNeill — who had taken the role
instead — moved onto Celtic a year and the
opportunity opened up for the unemployed
Ferguson.
He remarkably led provincial Aberdeen to
domestic glory — breaking up the Glasgow
duopoly — and even European Cup
Winners’ Cup success, with victories over
Bayern Munich and Real Madrid along the
way.
Fergie moved to Manchester United in 1986.
South of the border, he would win the
Premier League 13 times, the FA Cup five
times and the Champions League twice.
His crowning glory was the Treble in 1999.