Mourinho & Matic
Mourinho (Zafer / Wikipedia.org) & Matic (vverve / Bigstockphoto.com)

Five Managers That Have Signed the Same Player for Multiple Clubs

Managers / June 23, 2025

The ink was barely dry on Thomas Frank’s contract at Tottenham before talk turned to which of his former Brentford players he would poach for his new employer. The Dane swapped West London for the north of the capital when agreeing terms to manage Spurs, signalling a big step up in grade that would incorporate higher expectations and a first tilt at Champions League football.

He will do things his own way at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, which means playing his own unique tactics and systems with and without the ball. When you think about that, it makes sense that a manager will look to sign players from their old club, where that tactical familiarity and working relationship is already in place.

The remarkable xG outperforming Bryan Mbeumo will be close to the top of Frank’s shopping list, while his Brentford teammates Mikkel Damsgaard and Kevin Schade may also be asked about a reunion with their former boss at Tottenham. Frank wouldn’t be the first head coach – or the last, no doubt – to call upon their former generals at a new employer. But the success rate of managers signing a player for multiple clubs isn’t always as high as it might be…

José Mourinho and Nemanja Matic


A handful of managers have signed a player for three different clubs, with José Mourinho’s unbreakable bond with Nemanja Matic just one of those instances. Matic is the type of player that fits this bill to a tee. A reliable leader that acts as a veritable midfield shield for his defence when playing at his best, the Serbian followed Mourinho from Chelsea to Manchester United and on to Roma, making more than 200 first-team appearances for the Special One.

Together, they won the Premier League title at Chelsea in 2014/15 – before things went rather pear-shaped for Mourinho at Stamford Bridge, as well as the EFL Cup. That was the extent of their silverware together, although Matic was named in the Europa League Team of the Tournament in 2022/23 while managed by Mourinho.

The Portuguese head coach once described Matic as the best player he had ever coached, while the Serbian responded in kind – “Mourinho is a brand, and the best coach I’ve ever worked with,” he said. Sadly, their relationship hit rock bottom in 2023 when Matic refused to sign a new contract at Roma amid reported ‘growing tensions’ between the pair.

Carlo Ancelotti and James Rodriguez


It’s easy to persuade a footballer to join you at Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. But Everton? That’s a tougher sell altogether. So, it’s testament to the working relationship between Carlo Ancelotti and James Rodriguez that the Italian was able to convince the Colombian to join him for a torturous stint on Merseyside… the third time that the pair had worked together.

Rodriguez impressed at the 2014 World Cup, winning the Golden Boot prize as well as the Puskas Award for his screaming volley against Uruguay. Those performances were enough to convince Ancelotti to make the Colombian the then fourth most expensive player in history when signing him for Real Madrid.

They would have just one season together before the Italian left Madrid, but they would link up again in 2017 when Rodriguez joined Bayern on loan… only for Ancelotti to be sacked just weeks later. The third time’s the charm? Not really, with the Colombian leaving Everton after just one season and 26 appearances in 2021.

José Mourinho and Ricardo Carvalho


Although Mourinho described Nemanja Matic as the best player he had ever worked with, his relationship with Ricardo Carvalho would ultimately bear more fruit. The duo would win league titles in three different countries together: first with Porto, then Chelsea and finally with Real Madrid.

Carvalho also lifted the Champions League trophy with Mourinho as part of that thrilling Porto side in 2003/04, as well as the UEFA Cup and the Copa del Rey. The pair got on famously, although Mourinho wasn’t one to mince his words if he felt Carvalho’s performance levels dropping – as former Chelsea teammate William Gallas once confirmed.

I can remember one occasion where he [Mourinho] went after Carvalho after we drew with Middlesbrough. We were doing the video analysis, and he went crazy at Carvalho.

I was sat next to Geremi and we were looking at each other and thought ‘wow!

Fabio Capello and Christian Panucci


So enamoured was Fabio Capello with Christian Panucci that he would help the defender to make history in 1997: he would become the first Italian player ever to appear in the Spanish La Liga. That came after they won the Serie A title and the Champions League together at the all-conquering AC Milan, before Capello came calling for his trusty lieutenant when switching to Real Madrid.

They would win the La Liga title in 1996/97, before subsequently joining forces together again at Roma. Capello would even hand Panucci his first proper job in coaching as his assistant with the Russian national team. However, their relationship soured when Panucci accused Capello of refusing to back him over a pay row with the Russians.

Neil Warnock and Paddy Kenny


Although not the most illustrious of footballing partnerships, the kinship between Neil Warnock and Paddy Kenny has been on the sport’s most enduring. Warnock signed Kenny on no fewer than five occasions for Bury, Sheffield United, QPR, Leeds United and Rotherham United – a spell that comprised much of Kenny’s playing career and more than 330 appearances.

When asked about his long-standing relationship with Warnock, Kenny revealed he was always delighted to link up with the manager.

He’s genuine, his man-management is unbelievable. I have so much respect for him.

I remember asking him when I was at Leeds why he kept signing me. He said, ‘I know what I’m going to get from you. I know there’ll be a bit of trouble off the pitch, but you’ll always produce on it.

That said, Kenny wasn’t overly fond of being on the receiving end of one of Warnock’s famous naked dressing room dressing downs…