5 Facts About the Premier League’s New Managers for the 2026/27 Season

Since the 1946/47 season, the Premier League has never seen this many new managers arrive at the same time. Of those nine appointments, several will be making their Premier League managerial debuts this season. Despite that, many of them have already built solid reputations outside England.

The sheer number of new faces also underlines just how unforgiving the Premier League can be. The competition offers little room for managers deemed to have failed. Arne Slot, for example, guided Liverpool to the Premier League title in the 2024/25 season.

However, after Liverpool’s poor run of form and the club’s decision to spend hundreds of millions of pounds in the transfer market, his failure to turn the team’s fortunes around proved difficult to overlook. The former Feyenoord boss was dismissed during his second season, with Andoni Iraola subsequently taking over on the touchline.

Pep Guardiola has also departed Manchester City, bringing his decade-long spell at the Etihad Stadium to an end. During his time in charge, Guardiola led City to six Premier League titles and every major trophy available. In the 2022/23 campaign, he also guided City to become only the second English club to complete a treble.

Guardiola’s position was subsequently taken by Enzo Maresca. The Italian had previously worked as his assistant and also managed Chelsea before being dismissed. Maresca, too, arrived with a strong reputation.

Beyond those names, there are five managers who will be completely new to the Premier League in the 2026/27 season. Who are they? Here is the list.

Marco Rose

Rose has built a strong reputation for taking mid-table sides and turning them into competitive forces. Throughout his managerial career, the German has worked with several clubs ranging from established sides to emerging teams, while also leading a number of them into European competition.

Rose has managed RB Salzburg, Borussia Monchengladbach, Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig. The latter three clubs all reached the Champions League under his management at various points. He has also won major honours, including the Austrian Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal, with two clubs owned by Red Bull GmbH, Salzburg and Leipzig.

After spending a year away from management, Rose is now ready to begin a new chapter in England with Bournemouth, replacing Andoni Iraola. The Cherries are set to compete on multiple fronts next season, including in the Europa League.

His first Premier League challenge will be a major one, with Bournemouth scheduled to face Enzo Maresca’s Manchester City in the opening week.

Xabi Alonso

Alonso is widely regarded as one of the most promising young managers in football, a reputation he firmly established during his time at Bayer Leverkusen. Under his leadership, he transformed Die Werkself from perennial underachievers into an unbeaten side during the 2023/24 campaign. Leverkusen also lifted the DFB-Pokal that season.

Following his spell in Germany, Alonso was handed the task of managing Real Madrid. His time in the Spanish capital ended prematurely amid reported tensions inside the dressing room. The former Liverpool midfielder spent just seven months in charge of Kylian Mbappe and his teammates before stepping down.

For the 2026/27 season, Alonso will begin a new chapter with Chelsea as manager. His arrival also means that the Blues’ squad-building project will be shaped around his vision, with hundreds of millions of pounds already committed to the club’s new project ahead of the season.

Pierre Sage

Sage rose to prominence when he took charge of Lyon following the turbulence surrounding Fabio Grosso in January 2024. He subsequently managed to revive the team’s fortunes, securing a Europa League spot at the end of the campaign.

A year later, however, he was dismissed following a poor run of results that affected Les Gones.

Six months later, Sage took charge of Lens and immediately made an impact. He guided Les Sang et Or into a title race with Paris Saint-Germain, although they eventually fell short in the final stretch of the campaign.

He also helped Lens reach their first Coupe de France final since 1998 last season and secured Champions League qualification.

Sage has now arrived in South London to replace Oliver Glasner, who left for Nottingham Forest. He will be expected to become a capable successor to Glasner, who had previously guided the club to a series of impressive performances across several competitions.

Alvaro Arbeloa

Arbeloa succeeded Xabi Alonso at Real Madrid after his compatriot departed last season. However, the former Real Madrid Castilla coach struggled to make a significant impact during his time in charge.

Madrid once again endured disappointment in the LaLiga title race against Barcelona and suffered setbacks across several other competitions.

Those results ultimately led to the decision not to extend his tenure. Arbeloa then moved to England after accepting an offer from Fulham, who had recently parted ways with Marco Silva.

Away from the Real Madrid ecosystem, Arbeloa will be expected to turn the Cottagers into dark horses once again. He has already brought two La Fabrica products with him to west London, with Gonzalo Garcia and Cesar Palacios joining in a combined package reportedly worth €50 million.

Sergej Jakirović

Among all the names on the list, Jakirović arguably arrives with the least glamorous CV. Before taking charge of Hull City, he managed several clubs in Slovenia and Croatia, including Maribor, Rijeka and Dinamo Zagreb. The Bosnian coach also had a spell in Turkey with Kayserispor.

In the summer of 2025, Hull City handed him the opportunity to take charge of the Tigers. Under his leadership, Hull progressed all the way to the Championship play-offs and reached the final, where they faced Middlesbrough.

Hull ultimately secured a narrow 1-0 victory in the final.

Jakirović will now make his Premier League managerial debut with Hull City arriving in the top flight as play-off winners. Ahead of the new campaign, the club has already secured the services of several players with Premier League experience, including Jack Butland and Matt Targett, who are set to join the Tigers at the MKM Stadium