The authority of managers is being steadily eroded because of the way modern clubs are structured, former England boss Sir Gareth Southgate says.
The increase in the number of football, technical, and sporting directors has led to a shift in power, although Southgate says he has “no issue with this evolution”.
But he says that despite the switch from ‘manager’ to ‘head coach’ set-ups, bosses in current-day clubs face just as much pressure as ever.
Southgate’s comments come as Real Madrid, Manchester United and Chelsea have all parted company with their head coaches since the turn of the year.
In a post on social networking platform LinkedIn, Southgate said that while Madrid’s Xabi Alonso, United’s Ruben Amorim and Chelsea’s Enzo Maresca each left their roles under slightly different circumstances, “power struggles either with club executives, club employees or players were ultimately the root cause of the end of each tenure”.
Maresca left Chelsea by mutual consent after falling out with the Chelsea hierarchy, while Amorim called out club chiefs before being sacked.
“I came here to be the manager of Manchester United, not to be the coach of Manchester United. That is clear,” Amorim told reporters less than 24 hours before his removal as he hinted at interference behind the scenes.
“The erosion of a manager’s authority has been a gradual process over many years,” Southgate, who led the Three Lions to two European Championship finals and a World Cup semi-final, wrote.
“It has accelerated with the widespread introduction of football, technical, or sporting directors, who now oversee long-term football strategy, report directly to CEOs or owners (or both), and sit structurally above the head coach.
“Personally, I have no issue with this evolution.
“Strategy, culture, planning, and continuity are critical to success in any organisation – and a football club is no different.”
He argues such structures are now necessary as a head coach “neither has the time nor, in many cases, the specialist expertise to manage complex player contracts, oversee global scouting networks, or run sophisticated data operations”.
And while some fans believe being a head coach rather than a manager brings a reduced work load, the 55-year-old says “the opposite is true” given “larger squads, bigger backroom teams, far greater analytical demands and ever-increasing media and commercial obligations”.
“The complexity of managing modern-day players (many of whom are effectively individual brands), alongside the financial stakes for clubs and the relentless scrutiny of both traditional and social media, and you have a significant melting pot of problems and pressure,” he added.
“My belief is that we should embrace a modernised version of the traditional manager, where we recognise the people they lead, manage and coach.
“As I once said to my bosses at England: players are not magnets on a tactics board that can simply be moved around.
“They are human beings. And managing that reality is at the heart of modern football leadership.”
But Southgate, who was in charge of Middlesbrough and England Under-21s before managing England from 2016 to 2024, acknowleged the different titles have led to a “subtle, sometimes unintentional, shift in power and status” – and that he “insisted on changing the title to manager” when he was offered the role of England head coach.
He said that was necessary in order to reflect the “authority, influence and control” he would need in the role.
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