8 iconic Barclaysman players we can’t believe are now football managers

The Barclays Premier League era came to an end in 2016 and you’d be surprised by how many iconic players from that era have since become football managers.

By now, everyone should know what a ‘Barclaysman’ is. Michu qualifies, but not Wayne Rooney. Morten Gamst Pedersen is straight in, but not Cristiano Ronaldo. You get the idea.

We’ve returned to the Barclays Premier League era and found eight iconic Barclaysman who have since ventured into football management.

Charlie Adam

Does it get more Barclays than this? We could happily sit and watch a compilation of the former Blackpool and Stoke City midfielder all day long.

The Scotsman eventually called it quits on his playing career in 2022 and he’s wasted no time in throwing his hat into the managerial game.

Adam landed the Fleetwood Town job in December last year and despite overseeing their relegation from League One last season, he’s the man who has been entrusted with getting them back up.

Ryan Shawcross

Alright, he’s only been given the reins at Stoke City temporarily, but we feel incredibly old watching Shawcross on the sidelines at the Bet365 Stadium.

A vital component of the Tony Pulis XI, Shawcross will have surely picked up a trick or two over the years in his playing career.

During his first game in charge of Stoke, he took on Adam in the EFL Cup as Stoke edged past Fleetwood Town on penalties.

Emmerson Boyce

We’re pretty confident in saying that every single player who represented Wigan Athletic between 2004 and 2013 qualifies as a certified Barclaysman.

Boyce was an ever-present member of the Wigan squad throughout their time in the Premier League and since retiring, he’s tried his luck as a manager.

After initially landing the Barbados job on an interim basis, he’s now the Wigan Athletic Women’s manager.

Martin Demichelis

The Argentine defender spent three years at Manchester City during the Barclays era and established himself as a bit of a cult hero during that time.

Since hanging up his boots in 2017, the former Argentina international has landed several managerial jobs. He started out as a youth coach with Bayern Munich, then got the River Plate job and is now the Monterrey manager.

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Tom Cleverley

Having played for Manchester United, Wigan Athletic, Aston Villa and Everton during the Barclays era, we’re in no doubt that Cleverley qualifies as a Barclaysman.

Still just 35 years old, he’s by far the youngest manager on this entire list. After originally being given the Watford job on a temporary basis, he was handed the full-time role at the end of the 2023–24 campaign.

While Watford does tend to be a bit of a basket-case when it comes to hiring and firing managers, Cleverley has made a good start to the season as his side currently sit fifth in the Championship.

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Alberto Aquilani

The man who was supposed to replace Xabi Alonso at Liverpool. Things never really worked out for the Spaniard in England as injuries hampered his three-year stay at Anfield.

Now aged 40, he’s since become a football manager. After starting out as a youth coach at Fiorentina, he landed the Pisa job last year, although he left that role in the summer and is currently unemployed.

Angel Rangel

The Spanish full-back hasn’t ventured far away from Swansea since retiring as he’s currently the manager of the Pontardawe Town Under-12s.

While the 41-year-old seems interested in managing at a professional level in the future, he seems to be enjoying his time at Pontardawe Town for the time being.

“We are a very small academy,” Rangel told BBC Sport. “We don’t have our own ground, we don’t have an analysis room or anything like that, but we have some fantastic coaches and players right through the age groups.”

Craig Bellamy

After cutting his teeth as an assistant manager under Vincent Kompany at Burnley, Bellamy has since landed the Wales job.

“I feel like every job I do is at the biggest club, the best club in the world,” Bellamy said upon landing the job.

“This now is the best job in the world, Wales are the best footballing nation in the world.”