10 Greatest Manchester City Managers Ever
6. Tom Maley
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Tom Maley was the first truly great Manchester manager. He arrived at Hyde Road following City’s relegation in 1902 and quickly demonstrated a passion for stylish football. His footballing upbringing had come mainly in Scotland where he played for several clubs including Partick Thistle, Third Lanark, Hibernian, Celtic, and then he had a spell with Preston North End in 1891.
An amateur during his playing days, he worked as a school teacher and later governor. He left this role in 1902 to become manager of Manchester City, helping them to their first major honour, the 1903-04 FA Cup. After leaving City in 1906 he became manager of Bradford Park Avenue then later assisted Southport.
5 . Wilf Wild
Wilf Wild took charge of Manchester City in 1932 and took them to the FA Cup final in his first season in charge. However, the Cityzens went all the way in the competition the very next year, marking their first FA Cup title in more than three decades. The FA Cup success was accompanied by a fifth-place League finish, and the two subsequent seasons also resulted in top-half finishes.
The consistency of the preceding seasons was built upon in 1936-37. City opened the campaign with just two wins from their opening 10 games. However, Wild and Co. reeled off seven straight wins, one of them over a dominant Arsenal team, to win their first English top-flight title.
After fourteen difficult but mainly successful years, Wild asked the Board to bring in a new man. Former Captain Sam Cowan was recruited in December 1946 and Wild was allowed back to perform the role of secretary. He may not be the first name most think of when they talk about great City managers, but Wild was one of the greatest Manchester City managers ever.
4. Manuel Pellegrini
Pellegrini was appointed as manager of Manchester City in June 2013. He won the Football League Cup and Premier League in his first season as manager. In that process, he became the first manager from outside Europe to manage a team to the English Premier League title.
The title-winning season was also noted for goal-scoring prowess with Manchester City scoring 151 goals in all competitions – an English football record then. He was roundly praised for his attacking managerial style, calm demeanour and man management. He guided Manchester City to League Cup once more in 2015-16, before leaving the club in the summer.