Sheffield Wednesday‘s German manager Danny Rohl has one, simple, answer – Bundesliga clubs are “braver” in who they appoint than those in the Premier League.
Only four Premier League coaches are English, and none have won a major trophy in senior football. Howard Wilkinson, with Leeds United in 1992, remains the last Englishman to win the title, Harry Redknapp the FA Cup (2008) and Middlesbrough’s Gareth Southgate the League Cup (2004).
Only nine English coaches have managed in the Champions League since it was rebranded in 1992, taking just 78 games between them.
By contrast, German coaches are in the majority when it comes to Championship clubs in Yorkshire. They make up exactly half of Bundesliga coaches and are also represented in the Premier League, Serie A and La Liga, unlike the English.
“Maybe one thing is that in Germany a couple of years ago a lot of clubs were brave enough to give young coaches opportunities,” reflects Rohl.
“You can have good coaches in the academy or in the under-21 teams but if they don’t get the opportunity at the next level, nobody knows if they are good or not good.”
If the Premier League can be accused of shying away from bold coaching choices, the Championship cannot. Rohl was 34 when the Owls handed him his first managerial job 12 months ago, a year younger than Thomas Tuchel when he got his first senior role (at Mainz) en route to managing England.
“When you look to (Leeds United’s Daniel) Farke and (Norwich City’s David) Wagner they were Bundesliga managers who came (back) to the Championship,” Rohl points out. “To manage in the Championship means a lot.
“It’s not the Premier League but the challenge is a tough one. You cannot say, ‘It’s just the Championship.’ The Championship is a really high (standard) league.
“It’s tough to get a Championship job and you see a lot of managerial changes during the season. It’s maybe the fifth best league (in Europe).”
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