Being the manager of Liverpool FC is no easy job -- it isn’t a placeholder stop for a veteran coach looking to earn a fat check. Jurgen Klopp has been successful on Merseyside because he’s connected with the Liverpool community, serving as a beating heart uniting those of all ages for a common good: the success of Liverpool FC.

Who are the best 10 Liverpool managers of all time? Keep reading this Betway Insider top 10 to find out.

Who is the current Liverpool manager?

The current Liverpool FC manager is Jurgen Klopp, who has been in charge since 2015.

Who was the best Liverpool Manager?

The best Liverpool football club manager in our list is Bob Paisley, who brought three European cups to the club.

Liverpool Managers History

Liverpool football managers have led the club to six European Cups, the third most in football history behind Real Madrid and AC Milan. The club’s 13 total European medals also rank third in history. Which man is responsible for the most? Bob Paisley.

Famous Liverpool Managers

Other famous managers for Liverpool include Premier League hits like Rafa Benitez and Brendan Rodgers, both of whom brought the club just points away from breaking Liverpool’s lengthy title drought.

Other coaches for Liverpool in recent years worth mentioning include coaches of yesteryear like William Barclay and Tom Waston.

Ranking the Top 10 Greatest Liverpool F.C. Managers of all time

**Awards only include those who won while managing Liverpool FC

  1. Brendan Rodgers, 2012-2015

Nationality: Northern Ireland
Career stats: 50% win percentage
Awards: LMA Manager of the Year 2013-14, 2x Premier League Manager of the Month

What could’ve been for former Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers? Had a certain Steven Gerrard not slipped against Chelsea in the penultimate match of the 2013-14 season, or had Rodgers’ tepid Reds defense not conceded three late goals in the “Crystalbul” debacle, he might be the man talked about as ending the Liverpool title drought.

Rodgers led Liverpool to an impressive 84 points in 2013-14, the team’s second-highest tally in the Premier League era in non-Klopp seasons. The 101 league goals scored are the team’s best in the Premier League era and the fifth most of any team.

Rodgers’s Reds slipped in 2014-15 and he was sacked early in the 2015-16 season.

  1. William Edward Barclay, 1892-1896

Nationality: Ireland
Career stats: 2x Second-Division titles, 60.63%
Awards:

Who was the first manager of Liverpool FC? The answer is William Edward Barclay, an Irishman who was also the first manager of Everton FC -- this was during a period where the original Everton eventually merged into Liverpool.

Barclay didn’t help Liverpool enjoy top-flight success, but he did help Liverpool get promoted twice (and relegation from the first division once). He is one of two men to have coached both Everton and Liverpool.

  1. Gerard Houillier, 1998-2004

Nationality: France
Career stats: 1x FA Cup, 2x League Cup, 1x UEFA Cup, 1x Super Cup, 1x Charity Shield, 52.12%
Awards: UEFA Team of the Year, 3x Premier League Manager of the Month

Former Liverpool head coach Gerard Houillier was the ultimate cup specialist. The Reds only cracked 80 points once with him in the league, never putting in an earnest title challenge in an era dominated by Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United. However, his team won a treble of cups in 2000-2001 (FA, League, and UEFA).

Houillier’s Liverpool career started out awkwardly -- he was originally a co-manager alongside Roy Evans. Houillier assumed the full-time mantle quickly into the 1998-1999 season and helped nurture a young squad eventually led by the likes of Michael Owen, Steven Gerrard, and Jamie Carragher.

  1. Tom Watson, 1896-1915

Nationality: England
Career stats: 2x First-Division Titles, 1 x Sheriff of London Charity Shield 44.34%

Who won Liverpool their first title in the club’s history? The answer is Liverpool’s second-ever full-time manager, Tom Watson. Watson shepherded the club for nearly three decades, winning First-division titles in 1900-01 and 1905-06. He is Liverpool’s longest-ever serving manager.

Watson was previously manager of Sunderland, who he also led to three league titles. He was arguably the first great Liverpool coach.

  1. Joe Fagan, 1983-1985

Nationality: England
Career stats: 1x European Cup, 1x First-Division, 1x League Cup. 54.2%
Awards: English Manager of the Year 1983-84

Former Liverpool manager Joe Fagan only lasted two campaigns in Liverpool, but he accomplished a tremendous amount in a short period:

  • A treble in his first campaign: European Cup, League Title, League Cup
  • European final in 1985

Of course, the 1985 European Cup final ended with the Heysel Stadium disaster. Fagan retired following the incident.

  1. Rafael Benitez, 2004-2010

Nationality: Spain
Career stats: 1x Champions League, 1x FA Cup, 1x Super Cup. 1x Community Shield, 55.43%
Awards: 1x UEfa Manager of the Year, 5x Premier League Manager of the Month

Former Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez only tallied 58 points in his first Premier League season, but he did the impossible: overcome a 3-0 Champions League Final deficit to beat a loaded AC Milan side and capture Liverpool’s fifth European Cup.

Benitez won other scattered silverware on Merseyside -- an FA Cup, a Super Cup, a Community Shield -- but nothing will top his 2005 comeback. He did lead a notable title challenge with ST Fernando Torres in 2008-2009 that ultimately fell short, but Benitez will ultimately be remembered as a cup specialist.

  1. Kenny Dalglish, 1985-1991, 2011-2012

Nationality: England
Career stats: 3x First Division, 2x FA Cup, 1x League Cup, 1x Super Cup, 4x Charity Shield
Awards: 1 x BBC Sports Personality of the Year

Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish continued the club’s impressive run of domestic dominance. “King Kenny” never finished lower than second in the league in his original six seasons in the 1980s, capturing three league titles with a high of 90 points in 1987-88.

English clubs were banned from Europe during Dalglish’s tenure, limiting the amount of silverware at his disposal. Dalglish returned to the club in 2011 and won a league cup, the club’s only trophy in a 13-year span from 2006 to 2019. The Liverpool legend will also go down as one of the best Liverpool managers of all time.

  1. Jurgen Klopp, 2015-Present

Nationality: Germany
Career stats: 1x Champions League, 1x Premier League, 1x FA Cup, 1x League cup, 1x Super Cup, 1x Club World Cup, 1 x Carabao Cup Cup 60.81%
Awards: 2x FIFA Men’s Coach, 2x Premier League Manager of the Season, 9x Premier League Manager of the Month

Current Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp did something that seemed impossible -- re-establish Liverpool pride. While the club had scattered success throughout the Premier League era, there was never a period of sustained identity.

Enter Klopp. Of course, he came with winning: breaking the 30-year league title drought was accompanied by the club’s sixth European title. But Klopp did more than that -- he established a play style, he connected with the fans, and inserted a belief back in a club notably longing for one.

The Jurgen Klopp record at Liverpool: 468 matches, 285 wins.

  1. Bill Shankly, 1959-1974

Nationality: England
Career stats: 3x First Division Titles, 2x FA Cup, 1x UEFA Cup, 3x Charity Shield, 51.98%
Awards: OBE, 1x Manager of the Year

Former Liverpool manager Bill Shankly inherited a club languishing in the second tier of English football and led them back to the top of the table. Liverpool was not a massive club in the 1950s, holding just five ever league-titles to their name.

Shankly had the Reds back in the first division by 1962 and as league champions by 1964. He couldn’t quite get the club over the hump in Europe, but he laid the foundation for his successor to capitalize.

Shankly has the most all-time manager wins in Liverpool manager history. He certainly has a claim for the best Liverpool manager ever.

  1. Bob Paisley, 1974-1983

Nationality: England
Career stats: 6x First Division, 3x European Cup, 1x UEFA Cup, 3x League Cup, 6x Charity Shield, 57.57%
Awards: OBE, English Hall of Fame, 6x Football Manager of the Year

Why is former Liverpool manager Bob Paisley the greatest Liverpool manager of all time? Here’s his CV:

  • 3x European Cups (a club record)
  • 6x First Division Crowns (a club record)
  • An Order of the British Empire
  • Brought legends like Kenny Dalglish and Kevin Keegan to the club

Related:

The 10 greatest Liverpool players of all time 

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