FC Barcelona has had some of the finest managers in football history considering Johann Cryuff’s protégés became coaches. The club is in contention to win the Spanish Copa Del Rey for the third consecutive time but a dip in form in the domestic league and an all-to-do second leg game against Paris Saint Germain in the Uefa Champions League has left fans and pundits irritated.
Any team with a final to play would have had much passion and respect for the Coach’s position but this is not Fc Barcelona. Challengers and eternal rivals Real Madrid are top of La Liga.
Not only that, they are also defending champions of the UEFA Champions league and hold a two-goal advantage over Napoli in the round of 16 – a stage in the competition where they are counting their stars.
Here are a few Coaches who would love to take his place as manager of the club.
Jorge Sampaoli
With Spanish as his native language, Sampaoli knows how to contain pressure and build an all-round team. He also stated that he would someday love to manage Lionel Messi. Many people saw this as a chance of Sampaoli managing his native Argentina but it could turn out to be on a club side which might come to realization sooner rather than later.
With Sevilla FC, Sampaoli sits third on the log domestically challenging the status quo of Spanish football.
He has also given the team a positive outlook into the UEFA Champions league by qualifying for the round of 16 and holding a 2-1 advantage over Premier league champions Leicester City.
With his astounding defensive record as exhibited by Chile at the FIFA World Cup Brazil 2014 and COPA America Chile 2015, FC Barcelona would in a long time be able to count on their defense and attack opposing teams without thinking about the dangers they live behind.
Michael Laudrup an ex-Barcelona player knows everything about the club’s philosophy
Laudrup played in the El Clasico for the two eternal enemies and witnessed 5-0 wins playing for both sides. He has managed clubs in La Liga and the English Premier league. Every manager starts with lower to middle table teams and crowns it off with a bigger team.
It would surprise a lot of people that in-form Chelsea Coach Antonio Conte managed Siena a Serie B side a few seasons back.
Luis Enrique is a great manager but his recognition as a great manager just like his predecessors wouldn’t have come to fruition if he had not managed FC Barcelona. Laudrup needs a chance at the very top and the world would get to know that he is a FIFA Coach of the year contender.
Marcelo Bielsa
Pep Guardiola has always attributed his success story to Arrigo Sacchi and Marcelo Bielsa. When he left the club at the end of the 2011/12 season he wanted Marcelo Bielsa to take the reins of the club but it eventually went to Tito Villanova. With so much experience in the game, his recent exploits with Basque side Athletic Bilbao in 2012 showed how few Coaches with his prowess can make a European final with moderate resources.
Ander Herrera and Javier Martinez are two of numerous footballers whose technical skills improved under his tutelage.
Aside this, he is from South America and knows how to bring back the best in the MSN (Messi, Suarez and particularly Neymar JR whose star has failed to shine in 2017.
The media and particularly football fans have tagged the Premier league as the league with the best managers. There are managers out there who are at par with these coaches but football success is down to chance and if Jorge Sampaoli, Michael Laudrup or Marcelo Bielsa is given the nod, they would take the club to the heights and position they have always envisioned to be theirs.