Most elite clubs look for an up-and-coming head coach or manager whenever there is a vacancies, but the majority go for someone in their 40s or 50s.
There are pros and cons. A more experienced leader will have found a formula that works through trial and error because young promising coaches in their 30s often have fresher ideas. The pressures of the media, criticism from fans and how to deal with a demanding owner might be better faced with some prior knowledge.
The European top leagues have a tendency to go for experience. Carlo Ancelotti is in his second stint at Real Madrid, while Max Allegri is in his second stint at Juventus, Stefano Pioli is in his second stint at AC Milan, and Maurizio Sarri is in his second stint at Lazio. Even though they are considered to be on the rise, names such as Mauricio Pochettino, Diego Simeone, and Erik ten Hag are all over the age of 50.
Six head coaches who are 45 or younger are in European football that have already been backed to lead a top club, and those who might be first in line for the next opportunity.
Candidates such as Marco Rose, Roberto De Zerbi, and Ruben Amorim were not included in the November 2020 piece because of that reason.
Although he has only 13 LaLiga games to his name, the impact of the former player has been immediate. Barcelona have started the transformation from a nervous and self-conscious side, afraid of making mistakes and reluctant to take the initiative, into a free-flowing team bursting with confidence since he took over. Their best performance of the season was this weekend's win against Athletic Club.
While it will take some time to find the right squad of players he wants to work with, he has stuck to Barcelona's well-balanced 4-3-3 formation that features flexibility when playing out from the back and allows for the strengths of the attacking players when going forward. Xavi has shown a cynical edge, sometimes happy to drop deep and play on the break when needed.
After six years playing and coaching at Al Sadd in Qatar, there is little doubt that he was brought back to Barcelona.
In his short time at Barcelona, Xavi has shown that he is worthy of a top head coach. The joy of football to the squad has been restored thanks to the calm that Xavi has brought to the camp, as well as his fine in-game management.
Italiano only ended up at Fiorentina because of the bizarre melee that saw Gennaro Gattuso appointed and discharged within 23 days. Italiano took Spezia to Serie A for the first time in the club's modern history in the year after, and kept them up the following year.
At the end of his first season at La Viola, there are clear signs that the German-born head coach is in the process of shaping the club to his principles. Though they have had some ups and downs, the eighth-ranked team is starting to look more comfortable with Italiano's signature high-pressing game. In spite of losing their top scorer, Dusan Vlahovic, in a 70m January transfer, Fiorentina are still creating and converting chances at an impressive rate.
Italiano has succeeded in creating a disciplined unit out of a group of players that had previously looked disorganized and disorganized. Italiano seems to master the art of managing upwards. The American owner of the team has not always been impressed with the head coaches he has chosen, but he tends to be full of praise for Italiano.
Despite having earned his right to manage a top club, Inzaghi still hasn't received the recognition he deserves outside of Italy. His first head coach job was at Lazio. After serving on a temporary basis at the end of the 2015-16 season, the former strikers first real attempt at football management only happened after he was appointed to the position of head coach in the summer of 2016 Thought that other opportunities wouldn't have arisen for Inzaghi, who slowly but surely has carved out a respectable coaching career, surviving five seasons under the notoriously hard-to-please club owner.
Though not quite as volcanic as Antonio Conte, the 45-year-old does share some similarities with his predecessor at Inter: he demands everything from his players. There are clear similarities between the two: the shared love for a back three and quick, relatively vertical football.
If they win their game in hand, Inter can still go top of the league. They have created the most chances in the league with 10 per game, thanks to key performances from Hakan Calhanoglu and Nicolo Barella.
The most recent rising star from the seemingly endless conveyor belt of coaches is the Danes. Having played for the club and been a coach in the Red Bull system gives him a good chance of success. Even with just one year as a head coach, there are clear signs that he may eventually take over even bigger clubs than Mainz.
The former chief executive and sporting director at AS Monaco is a Norwegian football scout and executive. He will write about soccer and the process of scouting.
The first achievement at Mainz was definitely out of the ordinary. The club had just seven points halfway through last season and looked like it was going to be demoted. Mainz collected another 32 points to finish in a respectable 12th place. The idea that the Great Escape was all about luck has been rejected, as Mainz sit comfortably in ninth place, 11 points clear of danger, having virtually secured their Bundesliga status for next year.
People who work with Svensson tell of a calm, intelligent, quietly charismatic coach. Honest and straightforward, the 42-year-old is generous with individual feedback and makes an effort to see the person rather than just the footballer. He used to stick to a 4-4-2 formation during his early days at Liefering, but he is pragmatic and tries to adapt his tactics to best suit the players at his disposal. The preferred formation this season has been 3-4-2-1. He favors an energetic, high-pressing football with emphasis on the ball moving forward.
Iraola can look back on some good times and some bad, but he is still in the early stages of his career. He took Cyprus' AEK Larnaca to the group stage of the Europa League in the year they finished third in Group A, and kept Mirandes up when they looked set for the same fate. His current status at Rayo Vallecano is precarious, having lost the last five LaLiga games, but he is still odds on to seal the 12th-place side's top-tier status for a second year.
The incumbent head coach of Athletic Club, who made over 400 appearances for the club during his playing days, is moving on to bigger things, and a former defender who made over 400 appearances for the club is already heavily favored to take over.
Iraola favors a 4-3-3/4-3-2-1 formation with a focus on quick ball recoveries. Iraola likes to catch the opposition off guard with his quick wingers, long runners and defensiveMidfielder who tends to drop deep when building from the back.
In addition to securing the last few points needed to mathematically lead Rayo to safety, the most immediate priority for Iraola -- who has been open about the inspiration he's gathered from playing under managers such as Marcelo Bielsa (at Athletic Club) and Patrick Vieira (at New The time is Thursday in the U.S.
Israel isn't technically in Europe, but its clubs have played in European competition since 1991, and four of them are in this season's conference league.
Considering his age, it is remarkable that he has not yet been offered a job in a top European league. He was the leader of unfancied Hapoel Be&er Sheva to three successive league titles between 2016 and 2018, and then joined Maccabi Haifa in July 2020. The traditional No. 1 club had been somewhat deprived of success in the years leading up to his arrival, but his impact was immediate, winning the league at his first attempt.
An excellent man-manager of both players and backroom staff, Bakhar is a deep thinker who combines shrewd game management with tactical open-mindedness. With 24 games played, Maccabi Haifa are six points clear of second place.
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