Every team needs an adept mastermind on the touchline. Football's best managers are calculating with their tactics, charming enough with their man-management to handle the emotional rigours of a full club season and sufficiently self-aware to cope with the psychological stresses of a demanding media and the external pressures of the fans. Top managers will transform any squad from a group of individuals to a well-drilled, harmonious collective in which every player knows their role and their worth. And they'll look good doing it, too.
Pep Guardiola, Manchester City
"Stubborn" is probably not the first word that would spring to mind when describing Pep Guardiola, but that could be his most important characteristic, at least the one that has enabled him to continue with his methods and beliefs: such as bringing his ball-playing style to his Premier League defenders.