Tony Pulis column: ‘He showed why good managers need time’
A few months ago, I received the great reward of being chosen as the Premier League manager of the season. Crystal Palace Alongside the trophy I won with Gillingham in Division Three (now League Two) in 1996, it is one of my most cherished memories over the many years I have been in the game.
So who do I believe deserves recognition this year? The League Managers Association (LMA) is holding its annual awards dinner on Tuesday, recognizing achievements in the men’s and women’s games. There are a few names that stand out in my opinion.
In the Premier League, the league trophy is always awarded to the manager who finishes at the top of the standings; There have only been four times this award has not been awarded since the awards began in 1993, so I was particularly proud when I was one of them.
I have often voted that way over the years, but I have also always respected managers in the lower tiers of the Premier League who have overachieved and voted that way on many occasions.
Arsenal and Manchester City have been the two standout teams this season and I’m sure Mikel Arteta and Pep Guardiola will deliver a great performance in this prestigious individual award, along with their teams’ impressive campaigns.
But when you take a look underneath them, you’ll see that there are more managers worth mentioning.
The success Keith Andrews has had at Brentford in his first season as manager is incredible. The Bees were many people’s favorites to be relegated at the start of the campaign and Keith tops the bookmaker’s list of the first managers to be sacked – but they fell just short of securing European qualification for the first time.
This award was won by Bournemouth’s Andoni Iraola, who was close to taking part in the Champions League but was left in the Europa League.
Iraola has managed my former club since 2023 and has built a team that has gained momentum and has not lost, despite having to constantly sell its best players during this period.
His success wasn’t just in a one-off season; instead, it was built over this three-year period, with consistent improvement each year.
Andoni hasn’t had the best start to his time on the south coast – it took 10 tries to record a first league win and it wasn’t until the end of October that it was possible – but in an age when managers get less time than ever before, he has proven that success can and will follow good managers if you manage it.
Daniel Farke showed this at Leeds this season; They turned their fortunes around at the end of November when they were under real pressure.
Along with Regis le Bris at Sunderland, Farke bucked the trend by retaining Premier League status with Leeds; This is something we no longer expect from promoted teams.
