10 Best Managerial Starts in Premier League History [Ranked]

After just 11 games, Arne Slot has already established himself as a Liverpool hero. The former Feyenoord manager replaced Jurgen Klopp at Anfield earlier this year and he came with big boots to fill. In terms of his start to life in England, though, things couldn’t have gone much better.

Sitting top of the Premier League table and the new Champions League qualifying stage, Slot has taken to life in England like a duck to water. How does his first 11 games in the English top flight compare to some of the best starts in Premier League history, though? Well, the Daily Mail has gone back and identified the managers who got off to the strongest beginnings in the division and highlighted how their first 11 games shaped out.

Let’s take a look.

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Those on 26 Points

Two Chelsea managers feature here

Chelsea dominate this list and two of their former managers kick things off here. Jose Mourinho and the man that would become Blues boss less than a year after his dismissal, Luiz Felipe Scolari, shared identical starts to life at Stamford Bridge. They both won eight of their first 11 games and drew two more.

The rest of their campaigns shook out very definitely, though, with the former going on to win the title while the latter didn’t even make it until the end of the campaign before he was sacked. Ange Postecoglou also started his life in England with eight wins, two draws and a loss. Life hasn’t gone well for him since and he’s struggled to replicate that exciting early form since.

Those on 27 Points

Carlo Ancelotti features here

Picking up one more point than that trio, we have four managers, including the legendary Carlo Ancelotti. The current Real Madrid manager is regarded as one of the best managers of all time and his start to life at Stamford Bridge when he joined Chelsea in 2009 justified that. The Italian won nine of his first 11 matches losing the other two to take home 27 points.

Joining him on that number is another ex-Chelsea boss in Maurizio Sarri. He actually went unbeaten in his first 11 games, winning eight and drawing three. Former Nottingham Forest boss Frank Clark also won 27 of his first possible 33 points. Like Sarri, he won eight and drew three of those 11 games.

The final manager to pick up 27 points in his first 11 games is John Gregory. The ex-Aston Villa coach joined the club midseason and guided them to nine wins and two losses in his first 11 matches, dragging the club from 15th in the Premier League table to seventh.

The Top Three Managers

Slot is only second

Slot’s start to life at Liverpool has been tremendous and it’s the second best beginning for any manager in the Premier League after 11 games. The Dutchman has picked up 28 points out of a possible 33, with nine wins, one draw and a loss to his name. That record is tied with Guus Hiddink who arrived at Chelsea on an interim basis shortly after the club sacked Scolari in 2009.

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The Russia manager turned things around quickly at Stamford Bridge. No manager has beaten Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s start to his tenure at Manchester United, though. After Mourinho was dismissed by the Red Devils, the former striker took charge on an interim basis and won nine games and drew two more in his first 11 matches. The 29 points he won during that spell is better than anyone else.

The start encouraged United to make him the permanent manager at Old Trafford and while the rest of his time at the club wasn’t quite as successful and ended on a sour note, no one can take away just how good things initially looked for the Norwegian.

All statistics courtesy of the Daily Mail and accurate as of 12/11/2024