When it comes to life as a Premier League manager, there are few professions in society generally, let alone sport, where the spotlight is so great, the pressure so unrelenting.
But who stands out from the crowd right now; who manages to overcome obstacles to the point where they emerge from their respective hot seats with total credit?
For those bosses of newly promoted clubs, it’s too early to judge whether they can translate their success to the top level.
Let me, then, focus on a trio who have each thrived in their own way to deliver Premier League highlights, despite working against compatriots with far greater support.
With a respectful nod to Thomas Frank (Brentford), the second-longest serving Premier League manager behind Pep Guardiola (Manchester City) and ahead of Mikel Arteta (Arsenal), my top three based upon last season should not surprise you.
Unai Emery (Aston Villa)
Emery steered Villa to their best league finish since 1996 and next season they will compete for the European Cup (Champions League) for the first time since they qualified as winners in 1982-83.
Despite the Sunday-Thursday treadmill brought by Europa Conference League football – a challenge that yielded a first European semi-final since 1982 – Villa excelled and managed to secure a fourth placed league finish.
This, despite possessing a squad which did not allow for too much rotation (10 players completed the season having made 45 appearances or more).
The pedigree of Emery was clear long before he arrived on English shores as the manager of Arsenal six years ago.
While he was never given a real opportunity to make his mark in North London, he has wasted no time during his second stint.
In fact, in little more than 18 months in charge at Villa Park he has transformed the fortunes of the Midlands club who have, for so long, been something of a sleeping giant.
Villa were 16th and hadn’t competed in Europe since 2010 when Emery took over.
From 16th to seventh, and now seventh to fourth, the former Sevilla and Paris Saint-Germain boss is a true perfectionist and an underrated motivator who has instilled a best-in-class mentality at Villa Park, and there is every chance he will defy the odds again when the club step onto the Champions League stage.
Sean Dyche (Everton)
Dyche did extremely well to keep the Toffees up after succeeding Frank Lampard in January 2023, but optimism for the following campaign soon gave way to despair, as Everton won just one of their opening seven games.
The Toffees turned the tide with victories over Bournemouth, West Ham and Crystal Palace, but the club was then hit with a 10-point deduction (later reduced to six) for breaching the Premier League’s financial fair play rules.
Dyche’s side dropped to joint-bottom on just four points as a result and faced a big relegation battle once again.
A further four points deduction followed, along with a winless run which stretched between mid-December and early April.
Despite all of this, Dyche guided his charges to finish a resounding 14 points clear of the relegation zone. They didn’t even need the four points they won back on appeal to survive, and won four of their final six games, including a monumental 2-0 derby victory over Liverpool.
It meant Everton stayed up with plenty to spare, enjoying their best season since Carlo Ancelotti was in charge.
The ‘Ginger Mourinho’ has now lasted longer than Ronald Koeman, Frank Lampard, Sam Allardyce or Marco Silva – a list of recent appointments that says much about the chaotic trajectory at Goodison Park.
The club’s problems remain as shown by events over the past week, and I doubt he would be the man to get this great club challenging at the other end of the table should they progress in that direction over the next few years.
What is true, though, is that Dyche has proven more than a match for a club in crisis and deserves kudos.
Andoni Iraola (Bournemouth)
Iraola has rewarded Bournemouth’s ambition with the former Rayo Vallecano manager steering them to their record Premier League points tally last term, eclipsing Eddie Howe’s high-water mark with the club.
All this after a slow start which left them with six points (and one win) after 11 games in early November.
Since then, only the top four and Chelsea managed to secure more points as Dominic Solanke led the attack with some style and a career-best 19 goals.
A progressive, forward-thinking manager with plenty of ambition, Bournemouth are in no mood to stand still and, if they can build on last season, the Cherries may struggle to hold onto him.
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