Why have so many of England’s best players struggled in management?

For England's 'Golden Generation', the path to elite-level management has often been a humbling experience.

It is believed that Steven Gerrard's position as manager of Saudi Pro League club Al Ettifaq is not under serious threat, but one of the reasons suggested for his stay of execution is that he has a prominent role in a new Netflix series to be released later this month.

It would be deeply embarrassing if the man once touted as Jurgen Klopp's potential successor at Liverpool were sacked before the program aired.

The former Aston Villa boss has not experienced the kind of career injection that the money the Dammam club can offer.

Gerrard has just three wins in 11 games in the Saudi Pro League this season and Al Ettifaq are 12th in the table, just five points above the drop zone.

Liverpool's darling was arguably the poster boy of Sven-Goran Eriksson's England era, with his ability to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, and yet the man who scored 114 times for his country is the last name to be failed to match his glorious performances on the field. pitching in the duo-out.

Wayne Rooney is working hard to make a success of his time as Plymouth manager, with the club currently sitting 20th in the Championship – two points above the relegation zone.

On being sacked as Birmingham boss after less than three months in charge, the former England top scorer said it would “take some time to get over his sacking at St Andrew's”.

The former Manchester United striker managed just two wins in 15 games following his controversial appointment in October. Birmingham seemingly turned to a big name to boost their commercial chances despite starting the season well under John Eustace.

“They thought they were appointing a young manager who had always been popular and highly regarded by every group he has ever worked with,” Sky Sports senior reporter Rob Dorsett said when Rooney left.

“Tom Brady is an investor in Birmingham City and it was seen as a dream team. Brady the NFL superstar and Rooney the football superstar together in Birmingham, but it [was] virtually an unmitigated disaster.”

Both before and after his tenure, Rooney was compared to Gianfranco Zola, who was appointed by new owners in place of the less recognizable Gary Rowett in 2016 and oversaw a decline in results. Rightly or wrongly, many Birmingham supporters attribute those fateful 83 days to last season's eventual relegation.

Yet Rooney was back in the dugout, determined to show he had learned from mistakes and prove himself just five months after his sacking. His goal of one day becoming manager of Manchester United or Everton is still burning, but will remain in the back of his mind.

Of course, all top players who choose to take the route to management come with great ambitions to rise to the very highest level. But sinking their teeth further down the football pyramid and working with players inferior to themselves in their pomp and circumstance is believed to be one of the biggest hurdles.

Any managerial departure must be considered on a case-by-case basis, with much depending on communication skills and how one handles the pressure. Marco van Basten and Thierry Henry will tell you that winning trophies as a player does not necessarily mean you will be successful in management.

While Gareth Southgate rose to become head coach of the national team following relegation and his sacking as Middlesbrough boss earlier in his career, there are a growing number of top managers who played the game at a lower level.

Eddie Howe and Gary O'Neil are England's leading lights in the Premier League, neither of whom can rely on a trophy cabinet to back up their status. But as evidenced by both impressive and special guests on Monday Night Football, collecting results is football's only currency.

Players are now more responsive to those whose coaching expertise can overcome an aura. They're cute for the cult of celebrity. Football is a young person's game and many now in their 20s will have only vague memories of England's Golden Generation beyond the stories their parents tell.

Speaking to Sky Sports recently, Cole Palmer said when questioned about the Zola comparisons: “I know he's an icon in FIFA so he must have been good. I haven't actually seen him play but everyone says that he was a great player.”

Then there is the 'market value' of these gifted individuals upon obtaining their coaching badges, which is inflated.

Frank Lampard – who has been named new manager of Coventry City – admitted he simply could not turn down the opportunity to become manager at Chelsea and then again at Everton, given the size of those respective clubs.

Lampard – like Rooney – had shown his credentials during his time at Derby, but part of that success was down to his strong links with Chelsea and his use of the loan market. At both Stamford Bridge (twice) and Goodison Park, the scale of the task proved too great once the stakes were raised.

Rooney's failure to build on Eustace's solid platform in Birmingham raises the question of whether it was the circumstance and unwanted scrutiny surrounding him replacing a popular manager that contributed to his rapid demise. Eustace had taken Blues out of relegation trouble over a period of fifteen months.

Were his players unhappy with the decision? Or were there enough signs that Rooney would fail to help the board cut their losses ahead of last season's January transfer window?

At the age of 39, he has already held four jobs. There is a constant struggle to stay relevant while remaining patient for the right job, knowing that it may not come at the perfect time. Gerrard and Lampard, aged 44 and 46 respectively, face the same challenges.

Gerrard spent a year at Villa, whose remarkable transformation under Unai Emery has highlighted the gulf in class – and what can be achieved when the right manager is placed in roughly the same squad.

Gerrard managed just 44 points in his 38 league games in charge. In the same period, Emery took 77 and look where they are now.

Lampard's record as Chelsea caretaker at the end of the 2022/2023 season saw him win just one match. For the likes of Lampard, Gerrard and Rooney, there is the fear of decay and being forgotten.

A Champions League medal as a player at club level, but they were never able to match that success with the Three Lions. These early experiences will have taught them a lot about what they don't want in management.

The hope is that, after going through a revolving door of failure, the very qualities that helped them become the country's Golden Generation will allow them to turn their fortunes around.

Such persistence was initially shown by Sol Campbell before he admitted last year that he would no longer apply for football management jobs. Campbell perhaps deserved more opportunities than brief spells at Macclesfield and Southend.

David James had two short spells with Indian Super League side Kerala Blasters, where he ended his playing career.

John Terry and Ashley Cole have so far taken on assistant roles without being No.1s, while Gary Neville's spell as Valencia manager has been short-lived. He, like Rio Ferdinand and Paul Scholes, has turned pundit after the latter's spells as Oldham manager and caretaker at Salford.

Before them was former England captain Tony Adams, who stayed in Portsmouth for just 106 days after Harry Redknapp left for Tottenham in October 2008. Having already spent time at Wycombe, former Arsenal defender Adams picked up just 10 points from 16 league games and his win percentage of 18.2 in all competitions remains the lowest of any manager in the club's history.

His next offer came in Azerbaijan before losing all seven games as manager of Granada when they were relegated in 2017. Adams was closer to a ballroom dance floor than leading again.

Many clubs are now thinking twice about how such high-profile appointments will be received by fan bases wise to PR campaigns that jeopardize progress.

During the 18 months away from playing, Newcastle boss Howe used the time to reinvigorate himself, looking at his coaching philosophy, his training methods and how he went about recruiting players. Learning through setbacks has proven to be his driving force.

Graham Potter appears to have followed the same path of biding his time and ultimately coming back a better manager for his short reign at Chelsea.

Lampard is now ready to give it another try, succeeding Mark Robins after a hugely successful seven-year spell at Coventry, propelling League Two strugglers Sky Blues to the cusp of the Premier League after finishing in took over leadership in 2017.

He knows there will be those who will judge him from the start, just as Rooney ultimately failed to build on the foundations Rowett laid in Birmingham.

The Golden Generation fell short on the field against England and have had a difficult time off it. It makes you wonder how many more hits they'll get on the managerial merry-go-round before they're lost in the game.

“The whole Golden Generation thing is quite frustrating for us players,” Lampard said in November 2009. “We didn't make it up. It's difficult. People talk about the Golden Generation because we have a good crop of players. They are .very talented individuals, but we didn't make the most of it.

“The Golden Generation can only be said when you have won something… when we have finished playing and hopefully won something.”

It must be emphasized again that England is not the only country to produce world-class players and has witnessed football legends fail to make the transition to management. There is no divine right nor correlation between playing skill and management acumen.

But Lampard knows the name will follow him through his first few weeks in the West Midlands, whether he likes it or not.

It is up to him and others to remove themselves from the shadow of the Golden Generation by carving successful management careers from the opportunities presented to them.