Postecoglou Out: 8 Managers Axed Immediately After Trophy Win

Chelsea, Manchester United, and Real Madrid are some of the teams that have dismissed their managers immediately following a victory in a tournament.

In an era where sustainable team strategies emphasize innovative playing methods, the 'win at all costs' mentality is becoming obsolete.

Lifting a trophy has become less significant than before, and these seven managers experienced this firsthand when they were let go even after leading their teams to victory.

Louis van Gaal

Those outside the club may recall Van Gaal’s tenure at Manchester United as notable for his amusing press conferences and winning the FA Cup in 2016 prior toJose Mourinho taking over, yet this victory merely masked deeper issues within the team.

A commendable initial season was marred by problems that carried over into the second year, largely due to a possession-focused approach lacking genuine offensive drive. This strategy often left Manchester United supporters utterly bored during various stages of his tenure.

Between November 2015 and January 2016, United experienced a significant stretch where they failed to secure a victory in six consecutive matches.

Van Gaal was close to departing the club as Manchester United appeared lost on the field. After that stage, winning the FA Cup wouldn’t have been enough to secure his position.

Maurizio Sarri

When Sarri is good, he’s brilliant. But wherever he goes, there always appears to be drama not too far behind. It’s no wonder the poor fella chews his way through 20 Marlboro Reds every matchday.

Upon taking the Juventus job after leaving Chelsea in 2019, things always felt like a marriage of convenience, following in the footsteps of Max Allegri.

A significantly more distinctive playing style, coupled with the team adjusting to their new manager, led to clear initial challenges.

Juventus managed to win the Scudetto, narrowly surpassing Inter to claim their ninth successive league championship.

However, after losing to Lyon in the round of 16 of the Champions League in August (owing to postponements caused by the pandemic), Sarri was dismissed only a year into his three-year contract.

Antonio Conte

Conte showed English football exactly what he was about in 2016-17 when his ruthless and pragmatic style guided Chelsea to the Premier League title in impressive fashion.

The wheels fell off considerably in his second season, though, and suddenly the uncompromising football became more difficult to stomach with Chelsea finishing fifth in 2017-18.

Despite their struggles to defend the title, Conte’s side did go all the way in the FA Cup, beating Manchester United in the final.

But it ultimately wasn’t enough for him to keep his job and he was sacked afterwards, being replaced by Sarri.

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Vicente del Bosque

As a legendary figure for Real Madrid as a player, Del Bosque took over as the team's permanent manager in 1999 when they sacked John Toshack.

He led the club through one of its most prosperous periods in the early 2000s, following brief stints as interim manager in the mid-1990s.

Del Bosque lifted the Champions League with Real in 2000 and 2002, the La Liga title in 2001 and 2003 and several other pieces of silverware, turning them into a consistent trophy-hauling side.

All this while making it look incredibly routine to manage a squad littered with superstar players, which came with immense pressure.

It was exceptionally strange, therefore, for the club to allow his contract to lapse in 2003, just a day following his victory in La Liga and only a week after they had signed David Beckham.

Over the following years, Real drifted away from the summit of football and struggled to secure any significant titles until 2007.

Fabio Capello

After being dismissed immediately following Real Madrid’s victory in the 1997 league title, Capello couldn't help but take another shot at success and returned to lead the team during the 2006-07 season.

Once more, this union seemed fated for sorrowful dissolution as the team continued without silverware. The fans were reluctant to rally behind his defensively oriented approach, and Capello remained steadfast in refusing to alter his tactics.

In his initial season upon returning to the team, he claimed victory in La Liga; however, this accomplishment came at the cost of alienating players like Beckham, Ronaldo, and Antonio Cassano, as well as eventually falling out with the supporters.

He ended their trophy drought by winning La Liga, but was sacked shortly after, having also underperformed in the Champions League.

Jupp Heynckes

Madrid replaced Capello with Heynckes in 1997, who had impressed since coming to Spain with Tenerife.

The German manager again fell to the same fate as the man he replaced, albeit in different circumstances.

Heynckes led Los Blancos to European triumph, winning the Champions League for the club for the first time since 1966 by beating Juventus 1-0, but that wasn’t enough for him to keep his job due to domestic underperformance.

His side finished fourth in La Liga and failed to win the Copa Del Rey, which resulted in him being replaced after just a year in charge. It’s ruthless at the top.

Laurent Blanc

Replacing Carlo Ancelotti at PSG in 2013, Blanc was key in establishing the club as a domestic titan in the 2010s following their Qatari takeover.

The Frenchman won three domestic trophies in his first season, notably Ligue 1, and retained the league title for the following two seasons.

Despite that, the owners had grown frustrated at PSG’s failure to dominate in Europe by 2o16 and despite Blanc finishing the 2015-16 season with a domestic treble, he was let go.