Top 10 available managers: Postecoglou in demand as Xavi eyes return

Some of these managers can afford to be picky, even if a couple risk being too choosy. Others are waiting for clubs to panic like f*** after a ropey start to the new season…

10) Joachim Low
We include the ex-Germany boss out of habit more than hope of him finding a new job. If a new gig isn’t forthcoming in the coming months, Low goes.

The 65-year-old is one of only 21 managers to have won the World Cup. But no-one has given him a route back into club football after he stepped down in 2021 from the Germany post which he occupied for 15 years – the longest international reign for a European nation.

“So far, I haven’t been absolutely passionate about a project,” he said earlier this year. “If that should happen, then I’m certainly ready to do something again if I’m really interested in it and find the project exciting.”

Low ‘studied one or two offers’ as well as possible returns to the international stage with Brazil, Turkey and Belgium, but his last club position remains the manager’s role at Austria Vienna, which he stepped away from 20 years ago. Having been without a job for four years, how long is too long to be out of the game while remaining relevant?

Ask Alan Curbishley.

9) Sean Dyche
You know what you’re getting with Dyche and there’s a lot to be said for that, especially for any club prioritising a quick fix over long-term aesthetics.

Dyche reckons he would have got more points out of Manchester United than Ruben Amorim managed and it’s hard to argue. He just needs a club to either embrace or ignore the gruff, old-school reputation because the 53-year-old is a better manager than that.

8) Roger Schmidt
The German won the Portuguese title with Benfica in 2022/23 to end a four-year wait following a run of four titles in five years, while also steering the club to the quarter-finals of both the Champions League and Europa League. But he was sacked less than a month into last season after only managing two wins and a draw in his first four games following a runners-up finish the campaign before.

Schmidt has been linked with an array of clubs, including RB Leipzig, Borussia Dortmund and West Ham. But the 58-year-old has also suggested that he won’t work again just for the sake of it.

7) Sergio Conceicao
The Portuguese coach lasted barely six months at AC Milan after taking over at the turn of the year. He found the Rossoneri in eighth place; he left them in eighth too.

But Conceicao did deliver the club’s 50th trophy – the Italian Super Cup, won by coming from 2-0 down to beat Inter – and the general view is that Milan’s problem’s go far beyond the coach. Many will still remember the 11 trophies Conceicao won in six years as Porto manager.

6) Edin Terzic
The nearly man of Dortmund, Terzic was so close to glory, leading his boyhood side to the Champions League final last season, a year after a final-day collapse gifted Bayern Munich another Bundesliga title.

But Terzic is becoming the nearly man of the managerial market given how many jobs he is linked to without an appointment materialising. Most recently, Roma were talking to the 42-year-old before they went all in on Gian Piero Gasperini, while Brentford are also mentioned as a possible destination but only speculatively.

5) Luciano Spalletti
Spalletti was sacked as Italy coach in the middle of the recent international break after almost two years at the helm of the national team. Having announced his own dismissal, the 66-year-old is either taking his time to lick his wounds or he would prefer his next gig to be closer to home since he has rejected a £14million-a-year deal to take over at Al-Nassr.

Spalletti, who has previously managed Roma, Zenit and Inter, took the Azzurri job after leading Napoli to the Serie A title in 2023. There is no disgrace in his Italy record and he is likely to be looked upon favourably by many big clubs while scouring the manager market.

4) Zinedine Zidane
Is Zizou a great coach, or just a great Real Madrid coach? That isn’t to denigrate his achievements at the Bernabeu. Only Carlo Ancelotti has won the Champions League more often than the three occasions Zidane has lifted it. And the Frenchman stockpiled his winners’ medals in consecutive seasons. Add a couple of La Liga titles and Zidane’s record is unimpeachable.

Still, though, we’d love to see Zidane take another job. He seems to be very choosy – fair f***s, he’s certainly earned that right – having been linked with PSG, Manchester United and Chelsea in the past. He has spoken about his level of English being a barrier to managing in the Premier League, but we all want Zidane to take the chance to prove he’s brilliant beyond the Bernabeu. That prospect, though, gets more remote the longer he turns his nose up at a return to the dug-out. He was offered £84million to boss Al-Hilal this summer but that wasn’t for Zizou. At this stage, he seems quite happy with his lot, and why the f*** wouldn’t he be?

QUIZ: Identify the Premier League managers from their player paths…

3) Gareth Southgate
Southgate recognised the time for ‘a change and a new chapter’ – for himself and England. What might that represent for Southgate?

Weirdly, a Euro 2024 campaign that culminated in England’s first final on foreign soil probably tainted his chances of a big club chance somewhat. There was speculation over a Manchester United move which always seemed fanciful, especially now Dan Ashworth is long gone from Old Trafford.

There’s a fair chance a statesman like Southgate decides he doesn’t even need the hassle of a high-profile club job. Perhaps a foreign club might hold more appeal than a domestic gig. Regardless, it would be fascinating to see how Southgate fares among players every day rather than every couple of months.

2) Ange Postecoglou
Big Ange eventually left Tottenham a hero after delivering on his promise to win silverware in his second season. His first year at Spurs was a thrilling ride; between then and Bilbao was a tough watch but anyone suitor concerned over the Aussie’s stubbornness will have noted his change of tactical approach to beating Manchester United in the banter final.

So where next? There could be an immediate return to management with Saudi, but we’d love to see him stick around in the Premier League. Leeds would work once they see grounds – reasonable or not – to sack Daniel Farke.

1) Xavi
After an unnecessarily shambolic exit from Barca, Xavi spoke of taking a sabbatical year. Which has now passed, so can we expect the former midfield maestro back in the dug out?

It seems so. Xavi has been linked with Manchester United and Chelsea and he has spoken of taking a Premier League gig, though we doubt the job he’s looking for exists here: “There’s no hurry for me, but I’d like a good project. Like, ‘You have four years to work and make a project’. I’d love to work in the Premier League, I love the passion there. In Spain, it’s too much about the result.”