Every Foreign England Manager’s Stats And Major Tournament Record

Now Thomas Tuchel has been signed, sealed and delivered, who is the best foreign England manager of all-time? 

Admittedly, it’s slim pickings as only two previous bosses who held the prestigious position were born overseas. The late Sven-Goran Eriksson and Fabio Capello.

Ironically, both of their spells came either side of the ill-fated reign of Steve McClaren. The current Jamaica national team gaffer failed to secure qualification to the 2008 European Championship.

Nonetheless, Tuchel comes into the role of Three Lions head coach as just the third foreign England manager. How will he fare? And can he prove more successful than Eriksson and Capello?

Sven-Goran Eriksson England Stats

Sven-Goran Eriksson took his position as England boss with a fine reputation in 2001. The Swede had recently won the Scudetto with Lazio and had managed some of the world’s finest players at the time.

Eriksson oversaw one of the Three Lions greatest ever wins. Dismantling old rivals Germany 5-1 in Berlin during a 2002 FIFA World Cup Qualifier. However, he never got past the quarter-finals of a major tournament.

That was the case for the 2002 World Cup, 2004 Euros as well as the 2006 World Cup. They were the days with England’s ‘Golden Generation.’

Statistically, Eriksson was one of England’s better gaffers. But is he the best foreign England manager?

• England reign (2001-2006)
• Games managed (67)
• Wins (40)
• Draws (17)
• Losses (10)
• Win percentage (59.7%)
• Tournament best (3x QF)

Fabio Capello’s England Record

In the winter of 2007, legendary Italian manager Fabio Capello was tasked with managing the England football team. Similar to Sven-Goran Eriksson, Capello took the job with an exquisite reputation.

With that said, Capello had been sacked by Real Madrid earlier in the year owing to in-house issues at the Bernabeu. Nonetheless, he had won the Serie A title four times with Milan and once with Roma.

For England, Capello only had one major tournament to his name. The less said about that the better, the 2010 FIFA World Cup was one of the Three Lions’ worse on record. The Round of 16 was as far as Capello went after a humbling 4-1 defeat to Germany.

• England reign (2007-2012)
• Games managed (42)
• Wins (28)
• Draws (8)
• Losses (6)
• Win percentage (66.7%)
• Tournament best (1x R16)

Who Is England’s Greatest Foreign Manager? 

So, who was the best foreign England manager? Statistically, Fabio Capello comes out on top. However, Sven-Goran Eriksson managed more games and boasted greater achievements in major tournaments.

If truth be told, there isn’t a huge amount in it when comparing the two. Capello may well have done well if England were in the 2008 European Championship.

Capello’s stewardship came to a bitter end when the FA decided to remove John Terry as captain. Something of which Capello would not stand for.

Meanwhile, Eriksson increased England’s FIFA World Ranking from 17th to 5th during his time in charge of the team. It’s fair to say that Eriksson is England’s greatest foreign manager.