Former Manchester United defender John O’Shea has been made interim head coach of the Republic of Ireland – but how have the rest of Fergie’s former players fared as managers?
O’Shea, 42, won 118 caps for Ireland and was assistant coach to former manager Stephen Kenny. Kenny departed after the team failed to qualify for Euro 2024.
A permanent replacement will be announced in early April, the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) have said.
John O’Shea will therefore be in charge of the side for friendlies against Switzerland and Belgium, aided by Crystal Palace assistant coach Paddy McCarthy.
Having also coached at Reading and Sunderland, O’Shea was part of ex-Manchester United team-mate Wayne Rooney’s staff at Birmingham City.
The pair both left the club in January after the Championship club sacked Rooney.
O’Shea, who only retired as a player in 2019, has described being given the interim role as an “incredible honour”.
The 42-year-old told BBC Sport: “I’ve always had immense pride representing my country, whether that be during my playing career or as part of the coaching staff,”
He becomes the latest in a long line of former Manchester United players to have gone into management after playing under legendary boss, Sir Alex Ferguson.
This got us wondering, who has been the most successful? And will any of Fergie’s former players ever come close to matching his achievements as a coach?
Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United Players As Managers
Widely regarded as the greatest manager in football history, the legendary Sir Alex won countless titles including 13 Premier Leagues and two Champions League trophies.
His legacy is one of unrivalled success, winning everything he possibly could across 26 incredible years at Old Trafford.
It’s therefore no surprise to see so many of his former players move into management after playing under him.
Many of these have become successful coaches in their own right, winning trophies from the dugout for their teams.
Some, such as iconic French striker Eric Cantona, were less successful. The enigmatic forward enjoyed a brief spell in charge of the French national beach football team, though he did coach them to a third-placed finish at the 2006 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup.
And midfield maestro and England legend Paul Scholes was in charge of hometown club Oldham Athletic for just 31 days in 2019. The TNT Sports pundit resigned within a month due to issues with the club’s chairman.
In total, there have been close to 40 of Ferguson’s former players who have worked as a manager in some capacity.
But for the purposes of this article, we will be focussing on those who were at least in charge of professional teams, and for long enough to make an impression.
Wayne Rooney
United’s leading all-time goalscorer, Rooney earned praise for his work at Derby County. Operating on no budget and facing a 21-point deduction, he did brilliantly to battle against relegation, and would have kept the Rams up were it not for the penalty.
He then moved to D.C. United in the MLS, before his controversial appointment at Birmingham City. In a disastrous move for all parties, Birmingham took just one point from Rooney’s first five games, and tumbled down the table.
Having taken over a team in the play-offs, Rooney saw the Blues fall to 20th. With his reputation as a coach in tatters, it seems Rooney will have to drop down the leagues to find work any time soon.
Michael Carrick
One man faring better is Middlesbrough boss, Michael Carrick. After retiring as a player, he worked under Jose Mourinho at United as a coach.
He was then briefly appointed caretaker manager after Mourinho’s dismissal, before another ex-United manager took over in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Carrick again took the caretaker role when Solskjaer was sacked, managing United against Villareal in the Champions League, a game they won 3-2.
He stepped down following a 3-2 win against Arsenal in December 2021, and joined Middlesbrough in October 2022. He’s since guided Boro to the League Cup semi-finals, where they lost 6-2 on aggregate to Chelsea.
Middlesbrough are currently 13th in the Championship.
Ruud van Nistelrooy
Prolific striker Ruud van Nistelrooy beat Arsenal in the Europa League as PSV Eindhoven manager. He also guided PSV to the KNVB Cup in 2022/23.
The former Dutch international was linked with a return to United as part of countryman Eric Ten Hag’s coaching staff.
He also worked with the Netherlands national team, asssiting Guus Hiddink at the 2014 World Cup. Van Nistelrooy resigned as PSV manager at the end of last season and is currently out of work.
Gabriel Heinze
Former Argentina and United defender Heinze returned to his home country after retiring, taking up numerous coaching roles.
Most recently, he managed boyhood club Newell’s Old Boys, having also spent time in the MLS coaching Atlanta United.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
Probably the most well-known of Ferguson’s players as managers, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is the only man on this list to have succeeded Fergie as a permanent manager of United.
The Norwegian started his coaching career with United’s reserves, before managing former club Molde over two spells, either side of a year at Cardiff City.
He was made United boss in 2018, spending three years in the dugout at Old Trafford before being sacked in 2021. He has not taken a managerial role since.
Gary Neville
Best known as a pundit, Gary Neville spent a disastrous few months managing La Liga side Valencia before he was sacked.
The former United captain has since returned to Sky Sports, where he has become one of the key faces of their broadcasting team.
Phil Neville
Gary isn’t the only Neville to have become a manager since retiring. Phil Neville worked with England under-21s before joining United’s coaching team.
He was then actually an assistant to brother Gary at Valencia, and was later appointed England women’s head coach in 2018. Neville led the Lionesses to a fourth-placed finish at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
He now manages MLS side Portland Timbers, having spent two years coaching ex-teammate David Beckham’s Inter Miami.
Ryan Giggs
One of the most decorated players in United history, Ryan Giggs spent his entire career at Old Trafford under Sir Alex Ferguson.
The 64-cap Welsh international was briefly interim head coach for United in 2014, and worked as an assistant for several years.
He was made Wales national coach in 2018, but left in 2022 following his arrest in 2020 for assault charges.
David Healy
While he never broke into the United first team properly under Ferguson, academy graduate Healy has been a successful manager. The striker won five Northern Irish titles and two cups with Linfield.
Playing 95 times for the Northern Ireland team, he may well fancy the head coach job one day.
Michael Appleton
Another of Ferguson’s players who didn’t make it at Old Trafford, Michael Appleton has been all over the EFL as a manager. He left United in 1997 after a series of loans, playing more than 100 times for Preston North End.
He’s since gone on to manage Portsmouth, Blackpool, Blackburn, Oxford United and Lincoln City. Most recently, he was in charge of League One side Charlton Athletic.
Marc Robins
As a player, Robins is known for scoring what many believed to be the goal which saved Ferguson’s job in 1990. In a 1-0 FA Cup win over Nottingham Forest, Robins netted the winner to take some pressure off of a struggling Ferguson.
He would play more than 50 times for United, joining Norwich in 1992. Robins has managed Rotherham, Barnsley, Huddersfield and Scunthorpe.
Now in his second spell at Coventry City, he took the Sky Blues to the Championship play-off final last season. Sadly for Robbins and Coventry, they lost on penalties to Luton Town.
Laurent Blanc
Arriving at United well past his prime, Laurent Blanc retired after two seasons at Old Trafford. The World Cup winner has struggled as a manager, and was sacked by Lyon after just 37 matches.
Mark Hughes
A vital player for United in the 1980’s and 90’s, Mark Hughes played more than 300 games for the Red Devils. So deadly was the Welsh striker than Barcelona and Bayern Munich both signed him.
After his second spell with United, Hughes played for Chelsea, Southampton and Everton before retiring at Blackburn Rovers. He became Wales national coach in 1999, before coaching numerous clubs.
Best known for his time with Stoke City, Hughes also kept Southampton in the Premier League in 2018.
Most recently, he managed Bradford City in League Two, but was sacked in 2023.
Steve Bruce
Another journeyman, Steve Bruce has managed no fewer than 11 different teams in his career. He has been out of work since being sacked by West Brom in 2022.
Bruce made over 700 league appearances as a player, with more than 300 for Manchester United.
Darren Ferguson
Sir Alex’s own son Darren spent four years in United’s first team as a player. The Scot spent five years at Wolves before making more than 300 appearances for Wrexham.
As a manager, he has just entered his fourth stint as manager of Peterborough United, the club where he finished as a player.
Jaap Stam
And last but not least on our list of former Manchester United players as managers is Jaap Stam. The Dutch defender was part of that famous, treble-winning United squad in 1999.
He would later play for Lazio and AC Milan in Serie A. Stam then joined Ajax in the Eredivisie, working with their youth sides upon retirement.
Later on, he spent two years managing Reading from 2016-2018, and took charge of Feyenoord in 2019.
Stam was FC Cincinnati manager from 2020-21, and has just been appointed manager of Dutch lower league side DOS Kampen.
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