Zidane, Flick, Conte out, Mourinho in – 31 coaching changes already in Europe’s big five leagues

Robin Bairner

• 28 May 2021 16:04 BST
• 5 min read

Zinedine Zidane, Hansi Flick, Antonio Conte and Andrea Pirlo: the summer break generally brings about changes in coaching but perhaps never before have so many high-profile or successful clubs changed coach.

In total, Europe’s traditional ‘Big Five’ leagues have had at least 31 changes of head coach already this summer, with potential more to follow, including high-profile figures such as Ronald Koeman at Barcelona and Christophe Galtier at Lille.

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Indeed, this has been particularly profound on the continent. Among the 78 clubs that comprise Serie A, La Liga, Ligue 1 and the Bundesliga, 28 – more than a third – have already confirmed that there will be a change of coach this summer.

It is a phenomenon that has largely bypassed the Premier League, where only three summer changes are set to take place, including at relegated WBA, where Sam Allardyce has made way.

Zidane out in Spain, Koeman to follow?

In Spain, however, changes are afoot. Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane, already a three-time Champions League winner, has quit the club, while the future of Ronald Koeman at Barcelona seems distinctly uncertain.

There are another five changes elsewhere in La Liga to take place, though four of these come in clubs who finished in the bottom side. Granada boss Diego Martinez is the other coach who will go, having enjoyed remarkable success at the club.

Crazy coaching changes in the Bundesliga

In the Bundesliga, though, it is all change. Hansi Flick leaves Bayern Munich, where he was wildly successful during his 18 months in charge, to take the Germany job. In will come Julien Nagelsmann for runners-up RB Leipzig, while Borussia Dortmund, who finished third and have been Germany’s second-strongest side for the last decade, are also seeking a new coach.

What’s more, fourth-placed Wolfsburg will see Oliver Glasner depart to fifth-placed Frankfurt, while Hannes Wolf at sixth-placed Bayer Leverkusen is also leaving. That leaves Urs Fischer at Union Berlin as the only top-eight coach still in place as Marco Rose is being replaced by Hutter at Borussia Monchengladbach.

Conte, Pirlo and Gattuso out, Mourinho in

The situation is similarly profound in Serie A, where there are 11 changes on the cards among the 20 sides.

These overwhelmingly come towards the top end of the table, with Inter boss Antonio Conte the highest profile. At Juventus, Andrea Pirlo has been sacked and replaced by Max Allegri, while Napoli boss Gennaro Gattuso will also go.

Elsewhere in the top 10, Paulo Fonseca will have his place on the Roma bench taken by Jose Mourinho, and Sassuolo’s Roberto De Zerbi and Sampdoria’s Claudio Ranieri are all out.

Surprise champion Galtier to quit Lille

The biggest change in Ligue 1 has not come yet. Christophe Galtier, who led Lille to surprise Ligue 1 glory, has announced his intention to quit the club, with Nice his likely destination to replace Adrian Ursea. He is not included in the below table, however, as his departure has not been made official by the club.

Another of France’s big hitters, Lyon, will not renew the contract of head coach Rudi Garcia, who left amid a very public row with sporting director Juninho that had been kept well under wraps for some time.

Incidentally, Stephane Moulin‘s departure from Angers ends the reign of the man who had previously been the longest serving coach in the ‘Big 5’. That honour now belongs to Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone.

In total, there will be at least seven changes in all in Ligue 1.