Top 5 Managers in Europe in the 2025/26 season so far

A football manager or head coach is one of the most important pillars of a successful club or team. While the players on the pitch get the majority of the accolades, the coaching team toils in the background with endless analysis, preparation, team selection and tactics for every single game. 

The 2024/25 season witnessed many excellent coaching performances in Europe’s top leagues. However, the ones that gained the most attention and appreciation were Hansi Flick winning the domestic treble with Barcelona in his first season at the club, Arne Slot winning the Premier League title with Liverpool in his first season there, Vincent Kompany winning the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich in his first season with the German club, and Luis Enrique winning an unprecedented continental treble with Paris Saint-Germain. 

Four months into the 2025/26 season, we take a look at Top 5 best performing managers/head coaches in Europe so far – 

5. Francesco Farioli (FC Porto)

Francesco Farioli is currently leading Porto unbeaten at the top of the Liga Portugal, five points ahead of second-placed Sporting CP. Last season, Porto ended up outside the Champions League qualification places and ended the season without major silverware which resulted in the departure of his predecessor Martin Anselmi. 

Farioli was the coach at AFC Ajax when the club failed to win the Dutch Eredivisie title after blowing away a nine-point lead with seven games to go in the 2024/25 season. Farioli took responsibility for the failure and resigned from his position. However, since joining as the head coach of Porto, Farioli has implemented his tactics well at the Portuguese club with the team also responding to his style of play. In the UEFA Europa League too, Porto has four wins and a draw from six league phase games, only two points behind the table-toppers Lyon and looking likely to secure automatic qualification for the Round of 16. 

It’s never easy for a football coach to have failed in his previous job and still get an opportunity at another club immediately but something must have impressed the Porto management to hand him the reigns right after the Ajax debacle. Their decision has been proven right so far by the results the club has achieved. Porto is currently unbeaten in Liga Portugal with 12 wins and a draw in 13 league games. So far so good for the Italian but still a long way to go in the season. If Farioli can guide Porto to a league title after the Ajax heartbreak, it will surely be a redemption story worth remembering!  

4. Cristian Chivu (Inter Milan)

Simone Inzaghi made a surprising move from Inter Milan to Saudi Pro League Club Al-Hilal after Inter failed to secure major silverware in the 2024/25 season even after coming really close. The Nerazzurri were handed a crushing defeat by Paris Saint Germain in the UEFA Champions League final and also missed to cross the finishing line in the Italian Serie A title-race – a devastating end to what could have been an outstanding season for them.  

Former Romanian footballer, Cristian Chivu was appointed as the head coach ahead of the 2025/26 season and there were massive doubts around the San Siro whether he could handle the high-pressure job. However, Chivu has delivered so far both in the Italian Serie A and the Champions League. Inter is currently sitting in third place in the Serie A, just a point behind leaders AC Milan and second-placed Roma who are tied on points after 14 games. In the Champions League as well, Inter is well placed to secure automatic qualification after four wins from six league phase games. 

For a new manager coming in, it takes time to adjust to a new team, new club culture and implement the style of football he wants. It’s even tougher to manage the expectation at a big club after succeeding a successful manager but Chivu hasn’t looked out of his depth. Though Inter have been defensively less solid this season as compared to the previous ones, they have compensated for it with higher attacking stats as they have scored the most goals in the Serie A so far. 

For Inter to compete at a high level in both the domestic and European competitions and the manager not having made wholesale changes to the playing eleven, Chivu has expertly coached the existing players. If he can translate this excellent start into major silverware at the end of the season, his coaching credentials would certainly reach new heights. 

3. Pierre Sage (RC Lens)

RC Lens has been the biggest surprise package in Europe this season. Playing in the French Ligue 1 and coached by Frenchman Pierre Sage, Lens are currently sitting atop the Ligue 1 table, a point ahead of defending champions Paris Saint-Germain. 

Last season, Les Sang Et Or finished in eighth place with young manager Will Still which was not acceptable to the RC Lens management and they decided to bring in an experienced coach this season. As a result, Pierre Sage joined Lens ahead of the 2025/26 season. Sage was previously sacked by Olympique Lyonnais (Lyon) in January 2025 after a string of poor results. 

The Frenchman has worked wonders with this Lens team so far. Lens is currently on a winning streak of five consecutive games in Ligue1 – the best run of form in the league. What makes this feat remarkable is that Sage is utilising the current squad without much financial assistance. Lens even sold key players in the summer without buying any big or proven players. As compared to PSG or any of the other top French clubs, Lens squad value is way less and yet they are punching above their weight and coming out on top. 

Sage has also displayed attributes that are hallmark of a top coach. His change of formation from his Lyon team to Lens is proof that he can change, adapt and is tactically versatile as a coach. Though it could be difficult for Lens to maintain this form over the entire season but if they do manage to win the Ligue 1 title, it would be deemed as a herculean effort by Sage and one that will forever forge his name into the club’s history. 

2. Vincent Kompany (Bayern Munich)

Former Manchester City defender Vincent Kompany has been phenomenal since joining as a head coach of Bayern Munich in Germany. A lot of people and football fans were surprised with the appointment of Kompany ahead of the 2024/25 season as he had previously parted ways with Premier League club Burnley after their relegation from top-flight. Kompany failed to sustain top-flight football with the Clarets after getting them promoted to the Premier League the previous season. However, he proved the naysayers wrong by performing exceptionally well in one of the biggest high-pressure jobs in football, helping Bayern reclaim the Bundesliga title and also reach the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals that too without a major overhaul of the squad. 

This season has been a continuation of the previous one but even more purposeful.  Bayern have only suffered a solitary defeat in all competitions this season, that too came in a Champions League fixture away to Premier League leaders Arsenal. In the Bundesliga, they have been unbeaten so far with 12 wins and a draw from 13 games and eight points ahead of second-placed RB Leipzig. Kompany has instilled an attacking and attractive style of play at Bayern which can be seen in the high number of goals they score. Not just that, he has also added balance to the team by tightening up the defence which hasn’t conceded a lot of goals either. 

With Kompany at the helm, this Bayern Munich team has been a massive threat so far not just in the Bundesliga but also the Champions League. A world-class defender and serial winner in his playing days, Kompany is proving that he is an excellent football coach as well

1. Mikel Arteta (Arsenal)

Without a doubt, Arsenal has been the best performing team in Europe so far. Since joining Arsenal in 2019, Arteta has rebuilt Arsenal from a team struggling for identity and fighting for Europa League positions to a position of immense strength. The Gunners have been title challengers for the last three seasons, coming really close in the 2023/24 season. They have also been a dominant force in the Champions League, reaching the semi-final stage last season. However, they need to cross the finishing line this season and it is looking like this could finally be their year to achieve major silverware. 

Sitting atop both the Premier League and the Champions League (league-phase) table, the Gunners have looked impenetrable this season. Their defensive structure has been impeccable having conceded only one goal in six games in the Champions League and only nine goals in 15 games in the Premier League. The addition of astute attacking reinforcements in Eberechi Eze, Viktor Gyokeres and Noni Madueke has added real bite to their attack and is paying rich dividends now. Arteta has also strengthened his squad, bringing in quality players who can make an instant impact from the bench. A lot of the credit should go to Mikel Arteta. He identified the problems in the squad, envisioned the right kind of profiles he wanted in the team and has also instilled self-belief and a winning mentality in the team. 

Arsenal is really close to that elusive major silverware they have craved for more than a decade now and if all goes well this season, we could very well see Mikel Arteta deservedly holding aloft a major trophy with the Gunners.