When a footballer decides to hang up his boots, they choose a career not far from the world of the gridiron, namely as a team manager. A manager with experience as a player is considered to have a greater advantage, and potential for success. One of the best examples is Pep Guardiola, Luis Enrique and Zinedine Zidane.

At their young age as coaches, they have succeeded in giving elite titles to their respective clubs. Interestingly, this season, young coaches are also scattered in Europe’s top leagues, and appear very promising. The following are the 5 youngest coaches of the 2021/22 season in Europe’s top leagues.

 

1. Julian Nagelsmann -34 years old
Julian Nagelsmann is the youngest coach in Europe’s top league this season. This season, the 34-year-old coach was appointed to handle giants Bayern Munich after a successful three-year spell with RB Leipzig. Nagelsmann is a figure who started his coaching career when he was only 28 years old.

At that time, he was appointed coach of TSG Hoffenheim. his career as a footballer himself had to stop at a very young age, 20 years, because of a severe knee injury he suffered. Under his tutelage, Bayern Munich have only lost one of 9 matches this season.

 

2. Paolo Zanetti – 38 years old
Paolo Zanetti was appointed coach of Venice in 2020 when the club was still competing in Serie B. Amazingly, in his inaugural season he immediately made a big impact. Venezia are promoted to Serie A for the first time after a 20-year absence. They qualify after winning through the playoff tickets .

This season he became the second-youngest coach in Europe’s top league at the age of 38. The club’s target this season is to stay in Serie A. Venezia is now ranked 17th with 5 points. It will be a tough task for Paolo Zanetti, but the competition still has a long way to go.

 

3. Thiago Motta – 39 years old
This season, Spezia appointed former Genoa coach Thiago Motta as a replacement for Vincenzo Italiano, who left for Fiorentina. He became the third youngest coach at the age of 39.

Unfortunately, the start of this season did not go well for the coach. Spezia is currently stranded in 19th position after only winning once, drawing once and suffering 5 defeats.

Thiago Motta himself is an experienced figure when he was a player. He has defended big clubs such as Barcelona, ​​Inter Milan and PSG throughout his career.

 

4. Andoni Iraola – 39 years old
Andoni Iraola became the youngest coach in LaLiga this season at the age of 39. He is the figure who successfully brought Rayo Vallecano promotion to LaLiga after qualifying through the playoff ticket . Amazingly, in his inaugural season in LaLiga, Rayo Vallecano also appeared impressive.

Until the 9th week, they managed to rank 6th with a score of 4 wins, one draw and 3 defeats. Prior to managing Rayo Vallecano in 2020, Andoni Iraola already had experience coaching with two clubs, CD Mirandes and AEK Larnaca.

 

5. Mikel Arteta – 39 years old
After hanging up his boots as a player at Arsenal in 2016, Arteta continued his career as assistant coach to Pep Guardiola at Manchester City. In 2019 the opportunity to undergo a career as a coach came from his former club, Arsenal. In his inaugural season, the 39-year-old coach successfully gave the FA Cup title.

Unfortunately, the second season was quite disappointing. The Gunners failed to qualify for European competition and did not win a single title. This season, Arteta is equipped with big spending to improve the Arsenal squad.

Unfortunately at the start of the season, the Gunners performed very poorly, even occupying the bottom of the standings. However, they slowly rose by winning 4 wins and a draw in their last 5 matches.

 

Even though they are still young as coaches, the tactics and strategies they apply are no less slick than experienced coaches. They even become modern coaches, who give a new color in European competition. The question is can they make a surprise this season?