Throughout the 21st century, the rise in player transfer fees has received a great deal of attention and sometimes criticism from fans. But what is overlooked is that there is now also a phenomenon of spending a lot of money to hire a head coach. Coaches were once seen as the team's unsung heroes, but today, they are treated as much respect as the players and are praised for the team's success.
Therefore, whether it is the Premier League or other leagues, teams have spared no expense in hiring high-profile managers in the hope that they can lead their teams to glory. Although not all managers who have spent a lot of money on them have been successful. Earlier this year, The Mirror revealed the top 10 most expensive managers in history.
The 11 most expensive managers in history
11. Surrey
Napoli transfer to Chelsea - £5 million
While the top three on this list are all tied, let's start with the most recent, Maurizio Sarri's move from Napoli to Chelsea in 2018. The Blues spent £5 million to bring the Italian to Stamford Bridge to replace Antonio Conte. The former Tottenham boss spent two successful years in England, winning the Premier League and FA Cup with Chelsea, so Chelsea have paid a premium for someone they believe is capable of replacing Antonio Conte.
That's Maurizio Sarri, but it's not easy for the 65-year-old manager. He spent only one season in London and never agreed with the team, but he did lead the Blues to Europa League glory.
10. Ronald Koeman
Southampton transfer to Chelsea - £5 million
Ronald Koeman spent two impressive seasons at Southampton and took the team to European stage before Everton spent £5 million to poach him from St Mary's and appoint him as Everton manager. The move was supposed to take Everton to the next level, joining the Premier League's elite after years of wandering. However, it backfired, and Ronald Coman's tenure at Goodison Park was ultimately disappointing. He left the team just over a year later and had not been in management for a few months before taking over as head coach of the Dutch national team, with £5 million wasted.
9. Brendan Rogers
Swansea City transfer to Liverpool - £5 million
When Swansea were promoted to the Premier League for the first time, Brendan Rodgers rose to fame for leading the team to incredible football. They surprised everyone with their performances and ended up comfortably past the relegation zone, while also playing an attractive football. That was enough for Liverpool to spend £5 million to bring him to Anfield a year later.
The Northern Irishman spent three and a half years at Anfield and, despite never winning any trophies, remains fairly consistent in his charge at Anfield. At one point, he came close to leading the Reds to their first Premier League title, but they collapsed in the closing stages, with Manchester City beating them to claim the trophy.
8. Jose Mourinho
Porto to Chelsea - £5.2 million
Judging by the manager's success, Chelsea's signing of Jose Mourinho is undoubtedly the best deal on this list. In 2004, Chelsea signed the 'special man' for £5.2 million, and the money they spent was well worth it.
Jose Mourinho led Chelsea to their first league title in 50 years, and a year later led Chelsea to another league title. During his three years at Stamford Bridge, he won an FA Cup, a Community Shield and two League Cups, in addition to winning two league titles.
7. Jose Mourinho
Inter Milan to Real Madrid - £6.9 million
Chelsea are not the only team willing to spend a fortune on Jose Mourinho. A few years later, Real Madrid did something similar, luring Jose Mourinho from Inter Milan to the Bernabeu for £6.9 million. His ability to transform the team into a world-class powerhouse is evident.
However, when Jose Mourinho was at the helm of Real Madrid, Barcelona was one of the greatest teams in the world, so his success was not as rich as many expected. Despite this, he led Real Madrid to the La Liga title and the Copa del Rey.
6. Ruben Amorim
Braga transfer to Sporting Lisbon - £8.6 million
Ruben Amorim is one of the most surprising coaches on this list and was a little-known name when Sporting Lisbon spent almost £9 million to poach him from Braga in 2020. In fact, he had only been the head coach for two years before that, so when Sporting Lisbon were willing to pay such a hefty price for him, it was enough to prove his coaching ability.
His reputation as a world-class manager has grown in his four years at the helm of Sporting Lisbon, and his future is likely to leave Sporting Lisbon, with reports suggesting that he could soon head to West Ham United. During his time in charge of Sporting Lisbon, Amorim led the team to one league title and two domestic cup titles.
5. Brendan Rogers
Celtic move to Leicester City - £8.8 million
After Brendan Rodgers' tenure at Liverpool ended, the Northern Irishman moved to Celtic and quickly rebuilt himself as one of football's best coaches. This prompted Leicester City to spend a lot of money to bring him back to England. No, the Foxes won the Premier League title less than three years ago and they are eager to build on that leg.
This allowed them to spend £8.8 million to sign Brendan Rodgers at the start of 2019 and settle in smoothly. The former Celtic boss led the team to FA Cup and Community Shield during his time in charge of Leicester City, and regularly lifted the team into the top half of the Premier League table. But four years later, things changed and he left the Foxes in April 2023, shortly before they were relegated to the Championship.
4. Slot
Feyenoord to Liverpool - £9.4 million
After Jurgen Klopp announced his intention to leave Liverpool in early 2024, the team began looking for a suitable successor. The search reportedly led them to Arne Slote of Feyenoord. The Dutchman impressed during his time in charge of Feyenoord, leading the team to League Title and Carabao Cup triumph.
He seems ready to leave Feyenoord in the summer and bring his talent to Anfield, but it doesn't come cheap. The Reds are reportedly set to pay £9.4 million to hire the coach, making him the fourth-most expensive coach ever. While success is not always guaranteed, there will be a period of change at Anfield and the team are clearly willing to spend big money to ensure they experience as few growing pains as possible.
3. Boas
Porto transfer to Chelsea - £13.3 million
A young Portuguese coach has just joined Chelsea for a big price after his undisputed success in Porto...... Where have we heard this before? Unfortunately, when the Blues spent £13.3 million to bring in Villas-Boas from Porto in 2011, their second gamble didn't even pay half the reward.
After a disastrous performance in the first half of the season, he was sacked after 40 games in charge. The experience is now seen as one of the worst hires in Chelsea history.
2. Graham Porter
Brighton move to Chelsea - £21.5 million
Graham Potter is similar to Boas in many ways. He was highly regarded for his work at Brighton, which was seen as an exciting hire at Stamford Bridge when the Blues paid £21.5 million for the coach in 2022.
At the time, Chelsea were in the midst of a period of change and he seemed to be the best man to take the team into a new era under Todd Boehly. However, he was unable to achieve immediate results and the Blues struggled greatly during his brief spell in charge. After just 31 games in charge, Potter won just 12 games before he was sacked and £21.5 million was lost.
1. Nagelsmann
Leipzig transfer to Bayern Munich - £21.7 million
During his time at Leipzig, Nagelsmann became one of the hottest young managers in the world. It is widely believed that he will soon become one of the best head coaches in the world. That's why Bayern Munich spent £21.7 million to poach him from their Bundesliga rivals.
Bayern Munich spent £21.7 million to poach him from their Bundesliga rivals, making him the most expensive manager in history, but he was at Bayern after less than two years before they decided to let him go. Still, he won a league title and two German Super Cups during that period, but it was harder to lead Bayern without winning trophies than to win them during that period.