7 managers who were hired by and left the same club twice

3. Claudio Ranieri – Valencia FC

The name very much on everybody’s lips at the moment; the 64-year-old Italian has spearheaded one of the greatest, most surprising top division title charges in the history of English football, but his ventures haven’t always been so rewarding. Off the back of seven successful years coaching in his country of birth, Ranieri’s first international challenge came in the form of a role as Valencia manager in 1997.

During his tenure, he aided the flourishing of talents such as Gaizka Mendieta and Javier Farinós, while putting the club back on the map both domestically and in the UEFA Champions League.

Following a short spell with Atletico Madrid and four years with Chelsea, Ranieri returned to the Mestalla in 2004. His team started his second reign in stellar fashion, lifting the UEFA Super Cup and making a blockbuster start to the La Liga season. From there on, however, it would be a downhill spiral.

Claudio came under fire for poor business in the transfer market, while results in the Champions Leauge and then La Liga worsened as well. The Spaniards saw fit to fire ‘the Tinkerman’ following the club’s UEFA Cup exit to Steaua Bucuresti.