We’re approaching the time in the European domestic season where clubs start to think seriously about their future direction. The English Premier League is well known for “sacking season” — a glut of managerial movement which can occur any time from September until late November in the run up to the January transfer window.
Already this season, three Premier League managers have lost their jobs: Thomas Tuchel (Chelsea), Scott Parker, (Bournemouth) and, last week, Bruno Lage (Wolves.) Last season, a record was set in the English top flight when Manchester United‘s Ole Gunnar Solskjaer became the sixth boss to be sacked by Nov. 21.
European clubs aren’t averse to an early sacking either, with Domenico Tedesco leaving German Bundesliga side RB Leipzig on Sept. 7 to be replaced a day later by ex-Borussia Dortmund head coach Marco Rose, who had lost his own job over the summer. Meanwhile, sources have told ESPN that Spanish LaLiga side Sevilla have reached an agreement with former boss Jorge Sampaoli to replace Julen Lopetegui and Bayer Leverkusen sacked manager Gerardo Seoane to bring in Xabi Alonso.
Sometimes it’s an easy decision based on results; sometimes it comes out of the blue completely. But what goes into the decision to sack a manager or head coach? Someone who has been there and done it is former sporting director of Monaco, Tor-Kristian Karlsen. Here, he answers some of the key questions over how a club chooses to part ways with the person in charge.
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Q. Already we’ve used the terms “manager” and “head coach” … What’s the difference between them? Is there a different protocol for sacking each one?
A. Manager is the traditional British definition of an all-compassing, omnipotent figure who would typically be in charge of all matters related to the sporting side of a football club. From the running of the academy, to scouting and recruitment, the medical department through to the daily preparation, coaching, composition of the first team, the manager would have the final say — or exercise a strong influence, at the very least — in all matters.
Often exemplified by long-reigning figureheads such as Sir Alex Ferguson (Manchester United) and Arsene Wenger (Arsenal), the manager is arguably on the verge of becoming obsolete as most clubs — even in the U.K. — are adopting a more diversified approach in which most of the non-training ground/matchday responsibilities are taken by a sporting director.
A head coach tends to work under (or with) a sporting director and is generally tasked with matters related to coaching the team, such as preparing and picking the side for matches and leading them during games. Though hybrid versions of the role also exist, the head coach usually focuses on the tactical aspects around the first team, while they rarely get involved (though are often consulted) on financial or strategic matters.
On a structural level, a manager usually reports directly to the owner/board, whereas the head coach in most instances reports to the sporting director. In the event of a sacking, the process doesn’t necessarily have to differ, with the exception being that the sporting director may be the instigator and the deliverer of the bad news to the head coach, while the owner or chairman may break it to the manager.
Editor’s note: For the rest of the piece, we shall refer to the position as head coach to avoid confusion, unless talking about a specific example of a manager.
