Many moons ago I received the great accolade of being named Premier League manager of the season – with Crystal Palace in 2014. Along with the same award I won with Gillingham for Division Three (now League Two) in 1996, it’s one of my most treasured memories over the many years I have been in the game.
So, who do I believe deserves recognition this year? The League Managers Association (LMA) holds its annual awards dinner on Tuesday, recognising achievements across the men’s and women’s game. For me, there are several names that stand out.
In the Premier League, the divisional award invariably goes to the manager who has finished top of the table – since the awards started in 1993 there have only been four occasions when it hasn’t, which is why I was especially proud when one of them was me.
Over the years I have often voted that way myself too, but I have also always respected the managers lower down the Premier League who have over achieved and on many occasions voted that way instead.
This season, Arsenal and Manchester City have been the two outstanding teams and I am sure Mikel Arteta and Pep Guardiola will have a great run at this prestigious individual award to go with their team’s impressive campaigns.
Take a look below them, however, and there are more managers worth a mention.
What Keith Andrews has achieved at Brentford, in his first season as a manager, is amazing. The Bees were many people’s favourites to get relegated at the start of the campaign and Keith was top of the bookmaker’s list to be the first manager to be sacked – but came within a whisker of securing European qualification for the first time.
That prize was achieved by Bournemouth’s Andoni Iraola, who was close to a Champions League place but ended up in the Europa League.
Iraola has managed my old club since 2023 and, despite having to consistently sell his best players during that period, he has put together a team that has gained momentum, not lost it.
His success is not just in a one-off season – instead it has been built over that three-year period, by consistent improvement year after year.
Andoni did not make the best of starts to his time on the south coast – he took 10 attempts to register his first league win, which did not arrive until the end of October – but in an era where managers get less time than ever before, he has proven that, if you do get it, then success can and will follow good managers.
Daniel Farke has shown that at Leeds this season too – turning their fortunes around when he was under real pressure at the end of November.
Along with Regis le Bris at Sunderland, Farke bucked the trend with Leeds by retaining their Premier League status – something we no longer expect from promoted teams.
