The greatest manager of all time of every remaining Champions League club

With the UEFA Champions League playoff round wrapped up, there are 16 teams left with a chance of winning the greatest prize in club football. Here is each team's greatest-ever manager.

Arsenal's greatest-ever manager has to be Arsène Wenger. The Frenchman managed the club for 22 years, winning three Premier League titles, including one invincible season, seven FA Cups, and taking them to the Champions League final in 2006.

Current Villa boss Unai Emery took over at Aston Villa in October 2022, with the club in 16th place and a relegation dogfight. He reinvigorated Villa Park and led Villa to the Conference League in his first half-season. In 2023/24, he led them to fourth spot and into the Champions League.

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Diego Simeone has been the manager of Atlético Madrid since 2011, turning the club into a consistent challenger for domestic and European success. He has won La Liga twice, the Copa del Rey, two Europa Leagues, two UEFA Super Cups, and finished runner-up twice in the Champions League.

Pep Guardiola is considered FC Barcelona's most outstanding manager. He coached the club from 2008 to 2012 and won 14 trophies. In 2009, Barcelona won the La Liga, Copa del Rey, and UEFA Champions League treble for the first time in their history. He also won three league titles and two Champions Leagues.

Though his spell in Milan was short, José Mourinho's Inter team will live in football folklore for years. Mourinho led Inter to a Serie A title in his first season before winning a continental treble of Serie A, the Coppa Italia, and the Champions League in 2010, the first in the club's history.

Current Bayer Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso won the 2023/24 Bundesliga undefeated, winning 28 and drawing six. They also won the DFB-Pokal with six perfect wins, achieving the club's first-ever double. They went on a European record 51-match unbeaten run across all competitions until they lost to Atalanta in the Europa League final.

Galtier became LOSC Lille's manager in December 2017. He took over when the club was 18th and narrowly diverted them away from relegation. The following season, he led Lille to a second-place finish and qualification for the Champions League before winning Ligue 1 in 2021.

In their history, Liverpool has had many superb managers, but none have been as successful as Bob Paisley. The Liverpool legend dominated domestically and Europe in his nine-year spell, winning six First Division titles, three European Cups, and three League Cups.

Heynckes managed Bayern Munich on four occasions across 30 years and was responsible for turning Bayern into the winning machine it is today. He won the Bundesliga title four times, the DFB-Pokal, and the Champions League. He won all three during the 2012/13 campaign, securing the continental treble.

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Bela Guttmann is considered Benfica's greatest-ever manager. He coached the Portuguese giants to back-to-back European Cup successes in 1961 and 1962. He also won two league titles and the Taca de Portugal.

Ernst Happel is regarded as one of the most excellent managers ever. He managed Club Brugge from 1974 to 1978, leading the club to the 1978 European Cup final. They are the only Belgian team to make it to the final. He won three Belgian Championships and the Belgian Cup in 1977.

German manager Ottmar Hitzfeld helped Borussia Dortmund become a European powerhouse in the 1990s. Dortmund won two Bundesliga titles, two DFB-Super Cups, and the UEFA Champions League in 1997, beating a star-studded Juventus team in the final.

Like Club Brugge, Feyenoord had its most successful spell under manager Ernst Happel. In 1970, he led the club to European Cup and Intercontinental Cup glory and won the Eredivisie title.

Laurent Blanc won 11 trophies with PSG, including three Ligue 1 titles, one domestic treble, and two domestic quadruples in three seasons. Blanc has the highest win percentage of any manager under the Qatari ownership, with 73%.

Dutch manager Guus Hiddink had two lengthy spells as PSV manager, during which he achieved domestic dominance and European glory. After defeating Benfica on penalties, he guided PSV to European Cup glory in 1988. He also won six Eredivisie titles and four KNVB Cups.

Current Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti is the club's most successful manager, winning 15 titles in two separate spells. He has also won two La Liga titles, two Copa del Rey trophies, and three Champions League trophies in Madrid. In 2024, he was the best FIFA Football Coach.

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