9 famous players turned managers: Who made a successful leap?

WAYNE ROONEY: The English force, who most recently played for DC United, retired this week at the age of 35, joining Derby County FC as a manager. As a player, Rooney became the highest scorer for England, and the highest scorer for Manchester United, the club he joined at 18.

FRANK LAMPARD: He’s widely touted as one of Chelsea’s most accomplished players, and the only midfielder in the Premier League to score 150 goals or more. Now he’s at the helm of the London club as their manager. But his first managerial stint was with Derby County in the 2018-19 season.

THIERRY HENRY: French footballer Thiery Henry is an Arsenal legend — considered one of the greatest strikers of all time. He’s also arguably the greatest player of the Premier League. As a manger, he helms CF Montreal in the MLS. He’s believed to be a disciplined manager, after a video went viral of him seemingly chastising a young player who didn’t return his seat after getting up from a table at a press conference.

ZINEDINE ZIDANE: The iconic French midfielder retired in style, with that infamous headbutt in his final game. But as successful as he was as a playmaker (Fifa World Player of the year in 1998, 2000 and 2003, as well as Ballon d’Or winner in 1998), he’s now also considered one of the most successful managers in the world as he helms Real Madrid.

PEP GUARDIOLA: Pep Guardiola was a defensive midfielder and captained Barcelona from 1997 until 2001, when he departed. He also played for Al Ahli in Qatar, among other teams. He’s been managing Manchester City since 2016, winning them two consecutive Premier League titles from 2017 until today.

MIKEL ARTETA: The Spaniard began his senior career at Barcelona where he was loaned out to Paris Saint-Germain. He went to the Rangers where he won the Premier League and League Cup in his debut season. He later played for Arsenal, winning the FA Cup twice. After working under Pep Guardiola in Manchester City, he won the FA Cup again — this time as Arsenal’s current manager.

GARETH SOUTHGATE: Gareth Southgate won the League Cup with Aston Villa and Middlesbrough in the mid ‘90s and early 2000s. After managing Middlesbrough from 2006-2009 — and the England U21 team from 2013-2016 — he became the England national team manager. He’s only the third manager to lead England to the semi-finals of the World Cup, which he did in 2018.

STEVEN GERRARD: The Liverpool legend — who served as captain for club and country — is among the Top 4 most-capped English footballers of all time. After retiring, he coached in the Liverpool youth academy. However, since 2018-19, he’s moved on to managing the Scottish Premiership club Rangers.

OLE GUNNAR SOLSKJAER: The current manager of Manchester United used to play for the club, which he transferred to in 1996 for a mere fee of £1.5 million. His nickname at the time was the ‘baby-faced assassin’. He was also called a 'super sub' because of how often he was called up from the bench to score late goals.

MAURICIO POCHETTINO: The Argentine manager of Paris Saint-Germain (previously heading the Tottenham Hotspurs) shares a boyhood club with Lionel Messi - the Newell’s Old Boys. He’s also been capped 20 times with the Argentine national team, where he played at the 1999 Copa America and the 2002 Fifa World Cup.