Middlesbrough, Norwich City and Swansea City are all looking for a manager at the moment, and a glance through the odds suggests they may be looking at League One.
Brian Barry-Murphy and Dave Challinor appear on the latest Middlesbrough odds, while Michael Skubala is a shorter price by the day for the Swansea City role. League One is a great breeding ground for young managers, with the likes of Russell Martin leaving there and going into the Premier League, eventually.
Since 2015/16, 22 managers have taken the leap from League One to the Championship, with varying degrees of success. Some, like Dean Smith (Walsall to Brentford, 2015), have been a great success.
These 5 were not. Here are the worst Championship managers to come out of League One over the last decade.
5. Rob Edwards 27.3% Win Ratio (Forest Green Rovers to Watford)
Champions of League Two, led by Rob Edwards 🍾 #WeAreFGR 💚 pic.twitter.com/Z5h4cgOy65
— Forest Green Rovers (@FGRFC_Official) May 8, 2022
He might be the man of the moment for Wolves, and a 2-time Premier League manager now, but he was once a huge Championship flop.
After being named the 2021–22 EFL League Two Manager of the Season with Forest Green Rovers, Edwards left the club following negotiations with Watford. He succeeded Roy Hodgson at the end of the season.
Edwards began with a 1–0 home win over Sheffield United on 1 August, courtesy of a João Pedro goal. However, after winning only 3 of 10 league matches, he was sacked with Watford 10th in the table.
4. Matt Taylor 18.2% (Exeter City to Rotherham United)
Matt Taylor on a great afternoon for Rotherham United… #RUFC pic.twitter.com/Kj21sNnjBj
— Rob Staton (@robstaton) January 14, 2023
On 1 October 2022, following a 2–2 draw with Bristol Rovers, Exeter City confirmed that Matt Taylor had been given permission to speak to Rotherham United regarding their managerial vacancy.
He was confirmed as Rotherham’s new manager, with the appointment made official the following day. Taylor signed a contract until 2026 and was joined by assistant Wayne Carlisle on the same terms.
He guided the club to Championship safety in the 2022/23 season, but on 13 November 2023, was sacked with Rotherham sitting in 22nd position, bagging just 18% win ratio.
3. Gareth Ainsworth 17.9% (Wycombe Wanderers to Queens Park Rangers)
Gareth Ainsworth has departed with immediate effect.
We’d like to thank Gareth for his commitment, desire, passion and professionalism.
He’ll always be welcome in W12.
Full details ⤵️
— QPR FC (@QPR) October 28, 2023
After being linked with a return to Queens Park Rangers at the end of the 2021–22 season but opting to extend his contract with Wycombe Wanderers, Gareth Ainsworth was appointed QPR head coach on 21 February 2023.
He guided the club to a 20th-place finish in the 2022–23 Championship season. Ainsworth later spoke of wanting “big changes” and “pacy forward players” for his direct style of play. However, after 6 consecutive defeats, he was dismissed on 28 October 2023 with QPR second from bottom after 14 matches.
2. Nathan Jones 15.8% (Luton Town to Stoke City)
Nathan Jones and Narcís Pèlach both finished with a 15.79% win percentage as Stoke City manager 🤝 pic.twitter.com/j5kUTzbDOe
— James Knowles (@jtwknowles) December 27, 2024
After guiding Luton Town to second place in League One by January 2019 and earning the best Football League points-per-game ratio in the club’s history, Nathan Jones was granted permission to speak to Stoke City.
He was appointed manager on 9 January 2019 after compensation was agreed between the clubs. Jones won 3 of the remaining 21 matches as Stoke finished 16th in the Championship. Following a poor start to the 2019–20 season, with only 2 wins from 14 games, he was dismissed.
1. Paul Hurst 6.7% (Shrewsbury Town to Ipswich Town)
We are delighted to confirm that Paul Hurst is the new manager of Ipswich Town Football Club, signing a three-year deal at Portman Road#ANewEra
👉 https://t.co/DD2LYNUBjv pic.twitter.com/57ri6WkSyw
— Ipswich Town (@IpswichTown) May 30, 2018
Hurst was appointed manager of Ipswich Town alongside assistant Chris Doig, both signing 3-year contracts. He had taken Shrewsbury to Wembley twice the season before, and was highly regarded. He aimed to work within the club’s £3 million transfer budget and one of the Championship’s lowest wage bills.
Ipswich began poorly, winning only 1 of their opening 14 games and losing on penalties to Exeter City in the EFL Cup. Following a 2–0 defeat to Leeds United, Hurst was dismissed on 25 October 2018 with the team bottom of the table, marking the shortest reign in Ipswich’s history.
