10 of the Best Managerial Rants of All Time
24 years ago today, the greatest footballing rant of all time was born. Feeling the pressure of the title race, Newcastle boss Kevin Keegan frantically proclaimed that he would "love it if we beat them."
The "them" he was referring to was Manchester United who were top of the Premier League at the time and manager Sir Alex Ferguson had been rustling Kev with his comments to the media.
What made Keegan's rant so memorable was that he completely lost of control of his emotions. He went from completely relaxed to red as a tomato in a matter of seconds - such was the unbridled rage pulsing through his veins.
That's what makes a managerial rant memorable. Confused, unbound, and chaotic fury unleashed in all directions. With that in mind, here are nine of the very best.
John Sitton
"You can bring your f***ing dinner. Because, by the time I’m finished with you, you’ll f***ing need it. Do you f***ing hear what I’m saying or not?'"
- John Sitton
WARNING: DO NOT PLAY THIS VIDEO IF YOU DON'T LIKE NAUGHTY WORDS.
Caught on camera during filming for a documentary about Leyton Orient's disastrous 1994/1995 season, caretaker manager John Sitton absolutely lost it with his side 1-0 down against Blackpool at half time.
In a mesmerising few minutes, Sitton sacks one of his players on the spot and offers another two of them out - subsequently advising to bring their dinner with them to the fight. Unmissable stuff.
Neil Warnock
"We've got 2,000 fans out there getting pissed on and we've not got as much passion!"
- Neil Warnock
We could have selected one of about 300 Neil Warnock rants freely available on YouTube, but in the end we went for this gem, delivered at half time with his Sheffield United side losing at half time against Shrewsbury in 1994.
It's pretty hard to make out what he says exactly as every other word is bleeped out. There's a bit about his defenders being "soft as shit" and he shoots "tackling" a lot. Very insightful.
Roy Keane
"Who's phone is that? "
- Roy Keane
It takes nerves of steel to go into a Roy Keane press conference without switching your phone off. You know you're playing with fire, just seconds away from attracting the former Manchester United man's wrath.
One journalist had the bottle to do exactly this back in 2009 and boy, did he suffer the consequences. We're pretty convinced Keane might have been trying to melt the guilty party's brain with that angry stare. He didn't quite manage it though.
Nigel Pearson
"Are you an ostrich? "
- Nigel Pearson
Above is the most the famous sound bite to come out of this particular rant, but it is what Nigel Pearson said afterwards that fascinates us.
After comparing an inquisitive journalist to a flightless bird, Pearson went on to claim that he was flexible enough to stick his head in the sand like an ostrich. We would very much like to test that claim sir.
Rafa Benitez
"I want to be clear that I don't want to play mind games too early."
- Rafa Benitez
Prior to this bizarre rant in which Rafa Benitez reeled off some prepared "facts" about Manchester United, Liverpool were sitting atop of the Premier League.
Did the mind games work? Not really. United would go on to win the title by four points. Fact.
Giovanni Trapattoni
"Stunz is two years here and has no game, he is always injured. What allows Strunz? "
- Giovanni Trapattoni
If you like to watch elderly Italian men ranting in broken German then this video will be right up your street.
After his Bayern Munich side were defeated by Schalke, Giovanni Trapattoni had some strong feelings to get off his chest - he just didn't possess the necessary aptitude in the German language to do so. As a result, his post-match rant is borderline nonsensical but still massively entertaining.
Ian Holloway
"It's wrong. FIFA, UEFA, whoever you are. YOU'RE WRONG!"
- Ian Holloway
Ian Holloway is just the best isn't he? Always honest and open with the fans and never one to pull any punches when speaking to the press.
Perhaps his greatest moment was when he was asked to give his two cents on Wayne Rooney's possible departure from Old Trafford back in 2010. Ollie thought it was "wrong" and he said as much - about 200 times.
José Mourinho
"I won more Premierships alone than the other 19 managers together. Three for me and two for them. Respect. "
- José Mourinho
Jose Mourinho is no stranger to a bit of press conference controversy and last season he fanned the flames of scandal with this impassioned outburst after his side lost 3-0 to Tottenham.
He asked the press to decide what was more important, the result or the style of football, before reminding them of all the titles he'd won and storming out. Classic José - humble as ever.
Joe Kinnear
"Lots and lots and lots of swear words."
- Joe Kinnear
There's such a ridiculous amount of swearing in this clip, just a heads up. After many listens, we're pretty sure he'd taken offence at the negative reporting of a particular tabloid newspaper.
In two minutes of unadulterated rage, he goes straight to the king of swear words within several seconds seconds. This leaves him with very little opportunity to up the ante - so he just drops loads of F-bombs.
Alberto Malesani
"I WORK 24 HOURS A DAY! FINISH THIS ALREADY!"
- Alberyo Malesani
Panathinaikos manager Alberto Malesani absolutely lost it during the 2005/2006 season, calling out fans, players and football in general in a volcanic press conference.
The Italian gesticulates like a man possessed throughout and even stands up at the end for added emphasis. A performance of Shakespearean proportions.