While often it’s the players that get the plaudits for success, there is no more critical component to a football team than the man in charge.
We’ve chosen 4 managers who guided their sides to success throughout the recent campaign but it’s up to you to decide which coach earns a spot in the fans’ team of the season.
Guillermo Amor (Adelaide United)
Will go down in history as the man that helped deliver the Reds their first A-League championship.
Showed tremendous poise and character to hold things together when the side was winless and last after eight games, turning Adelaide’s fortunes around in stunning fashion.
Amor had the side playing not only an attractive style but also affective, losing just once more in their next 21 games to win the Premiership/Championship double. Take a bow Gui Amor!
Tony Popovic (Western Sydney Wanderers)
Popa took a gamble by shedding as many as 18 players from last season and deciding to overhaul not only his squad but the team’s playing style.
But it proved a masterstroke as the Wanderers not only went from second last (in 2014/15) to second this season and into yet another grand final.
And they did it playing an entertaining brand of football, driven by their meticulous and inspiring boss.
John Aloisi (Brisbane Roar)
The former Socceroo striker walked into a club with so much uncertainty off the field and with many experts writing them off as too old and past their best.
But Aloisi managed to bring the joy back to Roar’s football this season, with his side play an open, attacking brand and scoring plenty of goals.
Striker Jamie Maclaren went to a new level under Aloisi while it was only a last round stalemate at Melbourne Victory which denied Brisbane the Premiers’ Plate.
Kenny Lowe (Perth Glory)
After the salary cap dramas of last season, Lowe had a tough job to try and pick up the pieces and get Glory back to the toop in 2015/16.
While things didn’t start well, some astute recruiting in January to go with the class of Diego Castro and Perth were a finals side again.
Glory became the entertainers of the competition towards the back-end of the season, scoring a heap of goals, playing some superb football and going on club-record equalling five-game winning streaks twice thanks to the influence of ‘King Kenny’.
