We’ve reached that point of the season. A few months have passed, even more games have been played and the season’s status quo is beginning to emerge. With that comes teams who may be finding themselves flirting with disastrous league positions and poor performances in the cup, and teams who might not be delivering what’s expected of them. It’s around this time that followers of the sport start seeing managers and coaches being banished from their position due to not being able to get the most out of their team. Although there’s COVID-19 knocking about, which may delay football club owners from pulling the trigger, it doesn’t take away from the fact that a lot of Champions League mangers are having less than par seasons and need to buck their ideas up to have a chance of staying on. Here is a look at some mangers from clubs competing in the Champions League who are close to facing the sack.
Champions League Managers Most at Risk of Being Sacked
Zinedine Zidane – Real Madrid
Real Madrid are going through a bit of turmoil at the moment, both domestically and on the European stage. In La Liga, they find themselves off the pace and haven’t been able to cement themselves in the leading position yet. However, their fortunes have been far worse in the Champions League. Having played two games of the time of writing, and only having one point from them thanks to a late flurry on Tuesday to earn a draw against Borussia Monchengladbach, things aren’t looking ideal. Real Madrid have allowed themselves to struggle against what are decent teams in Shaktar Donetsk and Monchengladbach, but they’re not elite and really should have been beaten.
There’s still a chance to turn things around for Zinedine Zidane, but a doubleheader against Inter Milan isn’t ideal with just a single point on the board. If Europe’s most successful team fails to get out of the group stage this season, then Zidane is done for. Do you think they can do it? Have your say through Champions League betting.
Ronald Koeman – Barcelona
This inclusion may seem a little harsh for Ronald Koeman, who only recently took the reins of the Catalonia giants. However, it’s no understatement to say that what Barcelona has gone through in the past few months has been a disaster. With talisman Lionel Messi inches away from walking out of the club, a vote of no confidence in their president Josep-Maria Bartomeu, and a rubbish start to the domestic campaign that sees them in 12th position after five games, things aren’t looking good for the Dutchman.
What makes him a further prime candidate for the sack is that the Barcelona president and his board have resigned, meaning that a new regime will come in, and they may have a different idea on who’s best to lead the team back to glory, with there being many good options on the job market.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer – Manchester United
Pretty much throughout his entire tenure at Manchester United there’s been a sense that he’s not going to stay very long. In fact, it was never the plan for him to be here when he was placed in caretaker in charge. However, good performances and an attractive style of play saw him land a full-time contract.
Solskjaer has had close shaves with the sack before, but currently, there hasn’t been a bolder claim for him to go. Sat two places above the relegation zone, the domestic season has been woeful for United, and their only saving grace is the good win against PSG in the Champions League.
It looks like Solskjaer is hanging on by a thread and might be let go when a better option becomes available.
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