Why Man Utd legends seem destined to fail as managers as under-fire Van Nistelrooy suffers 7th straight league loss
JUST what is it about Manchester United legends and management?
Ruud van Nistelrooy’s struggle at Leicester is an all-too-familiar story when it comes to players who had stellar careers at Old Trafford but found it a difficult transitioning to the dugout.
Wayne Rooney, Roy Keane, Gary Neville and Paul Scholes are among those who have all tried — and so far failed — to make that jump over the past two decades.
None of them are currently in management.
Ex-United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer this month ended a three-year spell without a job when he became gaffer at Besiktas in Turkey.
On paper, it really should not be happening.
All of these players learnt from one of the most successful managers in the game, Sir Alex Ferguson.
But it often does not translate when they look to build their own careers in the game, post-playing days.
So what of Van Nistelrooy? He now finds himself heading down the same route, although he desperately wants to buck the trend of former Red Devils stars.
RVN, only in the job for seven weeks, was on the end of criticism from the stands on Saturday — and will take a lot to come back from that.
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When the Dutchman arrived he was welcomed by fans after Steve Cooper’s spell came to an abrupt end.
But the chants of “Rooood” have turned into “you don’t know what you’re doing”.
The jeers that accompanied the manager’s decision to take off Bilal El Khannouss — a 20-year-old Morocco international — just after the hour were impossible for him to ignore.
One thing we do know about King Power Stadium fans is that if they do not like what they see, they will not hesitate to let you know about it.
Until now, Van Nistelrooy has seen director of football Jon Rudkin take the flak. Cries of “sack the board” could be heard again on Saturday.
But now, he is also feeling the heat from supporters who have seen their team win a Premier League title and the FA Cup over the past nine years.
Ruud’s response of, “at this moment, I don’t have the answers for that” when asked why the team are so far off it right now, will not inspire confidence, nor will his refusal to explain the controversial substitution.
Van Nistelrooy, 48, now faces the most important two weeks of his short spell at Leicester.
He needs players in the January window who can somehow turn the Foxes’ season around.
Full-back Woyo Coulibaly, the midweek arrival from Parma, could not play as his paperwork had not been completed in time.
Van Nistelrooy says he has the board’s support this month and, when asked how many players he could sign, he said: “As many as we can.”
But Leicester need someone who can stick the ball in the back of the net because if Jamie Vardy is off-form, there is nobody else to step up.
A run of seven straight defeats is Leicester’s worst top-flight sequence in 24 years and they have not scored at home for their last four league games.
Many who played under legendary boss Sir Alex Ferguson have made a foray into management, however most ended up flopping.
As RVN edges closer to joining an unwanted list of United legends who can’t do it in the dugout, SunSport runs the rule over a 14 big names.
Steve Bruce
Former United captain, Bruce is now somewhat of a journeyman gaffer, having managed 12 clubs with a 35.7 per cent win rate.
Major honours have escaped him though, with FA Cup runner-up at Hull City in 2014 perhaps a highlight.
Bruce, who now manages League One side Blackpool, spends around two years at clubs on average and was abused by Newcastle fans before he was axed in 2021.
VERDICT: FLOP – MOST OF THE TIME
Bryan Robson
Robson, who was in the crowd at Old Trafford for Denis Law‘s tribute on Sunday, hasn’t managed a team since 2011.
He had a 17-year career as a manager, taking in jobs with the likes of Middlesbrough, Bradford City, West Brom, Sheffield United, Thailand, and then Thailand‘s U23s.
His most successful period came at Boro, who he helped gain promotion. Between 1994-2001, Robson also led the club to three Wembley cup final appearances, although they lost each one.
VERDICT: FLOP
Mark Hughes
Hughes appeared to be tailor-made to be boss – doing decent jobs with Wales and Blackburn.
That scored him a big job at Manchester City in 2008, who were then taken over by Sheikh Mansour two months after he arrived.
However, after spending a fortune, including signing the disastrous Robinho for £32million, he was sacked after 18 months with nothing to show but a 10th place finish.
Sackings at Fulham, QPR, Stoke, Southampton and Bradford then followed. Officially, he’s the most sacked out of the United legends.
VERDICT: BLACKBURN ROLE SAVES HIM
Gary Neville
Haunted Neville often gets stick for his awful and short-lived tenure with LaLiga side Valencia, where he lasted just 28 games in 2015.
The former right-back’s record of 10 wins in 28 games saw him earn a 35.7 per cent win rate. He’s never managed since.
The biggest low including a 7-0 drubbing to rivals Barcelona.
Neville said in 2019: “I never should have said yes to the job. I wasn’t qualified for the job and didn’t wake up every morning and think about coaching.”
VERDICT: FLOP
Roy Keane
As a fierce leader on the pitch, Keane appeared to be management material and things seemed to get off to a good start with Sunderland when they were promoted to the Prem.
However, he stepped down in 2008 amidst a player mutiny and a dismal run of form.
Worse was to follow at Ipswich Town, where Keane was sacked when The Tractor Boys dropped to 21st in the Championship in 2011.
VERDICT: FLOP
Phil Neville
Neville led England‘s Lionesses to glory in the SheBelievesCup in 2018 but finished a disappointing fourth in the World Cup a year later.
After stepping down from his role with the Three Lions, he was appointed as boss of David Beckham’s Inter Miami. But was sacked in June 2023 with the club rock bottom of the MLS.
Neville joined MLS side Portland Timbers shortly after and guided them to a final series play-off.
His hiring was criticised by fans due to past controversial tweets about women on social media.
VERDICT: FLOP
Mark Robins
Robins was the EFL‘s longest serving manager before he was brutally sacked by Coventry City in November 2024. He now manages Stoke.
He oversaw the resurrection of Coventry from the depths of League Two, to the champions of League One in 2020.
Robins was even on the cusp of bringing the West Midlands club to the Premier League when they lost the Championship play-off final on penalties to Luton in 2023.
He memorably led them to the FA Cup semi-final last season, where they were unlucky to marginally lose out on pens to Man Utd after climbing back from 3-0 down in the second half.
VERDICT: SUCCESS
Wayne Rooney
Manchester United’s all-time top scorer, Rooney was sacked by Plymouth Argyle on New Years Eve after five months in charge.
Wazza has been axed by all four clubs he’s managed: Derby, D.C United, Birmingham City and Plymouth.
The former striker has a 26 per cent win percentage – which accounts for 46 victories in 177 games.
VERDICT: FLOP
Paul Scholes
Scholes’ first taste of being boss was as caretaker manager at Salford City, a club he now co-owns with most of the Class of 92.
The legendary midfielder then spent just 31 days at crisis club Oldham between February and March 2019, until walking away following a disagreement with the owners.
He was re-appointed as interim head coach of Salford for a month, following the departure of Graham Alexander.
VERDICT: NEVER REALLY GOT STARTED
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
Solskjaer has finally got a managerial job after spending FOUR YEARS away from the game following his Man Utd axe in 2021.
But now Super Lig side Besiktas have confirmed a shock new job for the former Molde and Cardiff chief.
The former Red Devils super-sub striker helped guide United to a second-place finish in the Premier League and reached a Europa League final during his near-three-year reign.
VERDICT: A FLOP ON THESE SHORES
Ryan Giggs
In 2014, after David Moyes was fired, Welsh legend Giggs was hired as United’s interim manager – winning two of his four games in charge.
Following a stint as Louis Van Gaal‘s assistant, he took on the Wales national job in 2018 – leading his country to qualify for Euro 2020.
But Giggs, who oversaw 24 games, was forced to take gardening leave in 2020 before stepping down amid investigations into domestic and coercive behaviour of an ex-girlfriend.
The charges against him, which he denied, were dropped in 2023.
VERDICT: NEVER REALLY GOT STARTED
Paul Ince
In the lower leagues, Ince did a stellar jobs at Macclesfield Town in a player-manager role, before then getting MK Dons promoted to League Two and winning the FA Trophy.
In 2008, however, when Blackburn Rovers asked him to make the step up to the Premier League, Ince proved to be out of his depth.
After three wins in 17 games, he was given the bullet before later managing Notts County.
Ince left his first role at Blackpool in 2014, where he was once handed a five game ban for berating an official in the tunnel.
But returned to the dugout EIGHT YEARS later to lead Reading for just over a year in the Championship.
Ince’s managerial win rate was 39.2 per cent before Reading sacked him with the club sitting 22nd in April 2023.
VERDICT: FLOP
Jaap Stam
Stam said he’d happily join Ruben Amorim’s coaching staff at United last month.
The 52-year-old is currently in charge of amateur team DOS Kampen, in the Dutch sixth tier.
He was dismissed as boss of MLS team FC Cincinnati in 2021 having won four of just 25 games.
Before that, he handed in his resignation with Feyenoord bosses after 4-0 thrashing to rivals Ajax.
On our shores, Stam is remembered for his time at Reading. He enjoyed a successful first season, leading the Royals to the play offs.
VERDICT: FLOP
Michael Carrick
Carrick remained at Carrington after retirement, having been handed a position on Jose Mourinho‘s coaching staff, alongside Kieran McKenna.
The ex-midfielder took caretaker charge after the Special One’s sacking in December 2018.
He also stepped in for three games after Solskjaer’s dismissal, overseeing wins over Arsenal and Villarreal and a draw with Chelsea.
Carrick, 43, walked away from United after Ralf Rangnick‘s interim appointment and was appointed by Championship club Middlesbrough.
He won 16 of his first 23 Boro games as the club climbed from 21st to a play-off semi-final against Coventry. He signed a new three-year contract in June 2024.
VERDICT: SUCCESS IN EARLY STAGE OF HIS CAREER
VERDICT: JURY IS OUT