Crystal Palace’s Roy Hodgson will create history when he takes charge of the Eagles against Leicester as he will become the competition’s oldest boss
Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson became the oldest boss in the history of the Premier League on Saturday, when he led his side to a 4-1 win against Leicester City at the King Power Stadium.
The former England chief was 71 years and 198 days old when the fixture takes place and will therefore become the most venerable manager in the competition’s history.
| Name | Age | Date | Team | Versus |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roy Hodgson | 71 years 198 days | 23/02/2019 | Crystal Palace | Leicester |
| Bobby Robson | 71 years 192 days | 28/08/2004 | Newcastle | Aston Villa |
| Sir Alex Ferguson | 71 years 139 days | 19/05/2013 | Manchester United | WBA |
| Neil Warnock | 70 years 83 days | 22/02/2019 | Cardiff | Watford |
| Guus Hiddink | 69 years 189 days | 15/05/2016 | Chelsea | Leicester |
| Arsene Wenger | 68 years 203 days | 13/05/2018 | Arsenal | Huddersfield |
| Dick Advocaat | 68 years 6 days | 03/10/2015 | Sunderland | West Ham |
| Harry Redknapp | 67 years, 335 days | 31/01/2015 | QPR | Stoke |
| Claudio Ranieri | 67 years 125 days | 22/02/2019 | Fulham | West Ham |
| Manuel Pellegrini | 65 years 146 days | 09/02/2019 | West Ham | Manchester United |
Until Hodgson takes charge on Saturday, the mark will remain that of former Newcastle manager, the late Bobby Robson, who was 71 years and 192 days old when he supervised Newcastle’s 4-2 loss at Aston Villa, a defeat that ultimately cost him his post.
Hodgson is set to break that record by six days and with Palace in the midst of a decent run of form, may well go on to significantly surpass that benchmark.
Completing the podium for the top three oldest managers is legendary Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson, who was 71 years and 139 days old before he stepped down at Old Trafford in a blaze of glory by claiming the Premier League title in the 2012-13 season – the last time the club were English champions.
Long-time Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger, who left the Emirates only last summer, occupies sixth place in this particular list.
Meanwhile, there are three current managers, Hodgson aside, who are working their way up this ranking.
Cardiff boss Neil Warnock is the foremost of these and is one of only four men aged over 70 to have managed a Premier League club.
Click Here: New Zealand rugby store
Further down the standings are Fulham boss Claudio Ranieri and West Ham supremo Manuel Pellegrini, who at 65 years and 146 days is someway short of anyone else on the list.
| Name | Age | Date | Team | Versus |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attilio Lombardo | 32 years 67 days | 14/03/1998 | Crystal Palace | Aston Villa |
| Chris Coleman | 32 years 313 days | 19/05/2003 | Fulham | Newcastle |
| Gianluca Vialli | 33 years 227 days | 08/03/1998 | Chelsea | Aston Villa |
| Andre Villas-Boas | 33 years 301 days | 14/08/2011 | Chelsea | Stoke |
| Ruud Gullit | 33 years 352 days | 18/08/1996 | Chelsea | Southampton |
| Kevin MacDonald | 34 years 1 day | 23/11/1994 | Leicester | Arsenal |
| Alex Neil | 34 years 60 days | 08/08/2015 | Norwich | Crystal Palace |
| Stuart Pearce | 34 years 241 days | 21/12/1996 | Nottingham Forest | Arsenal |
| Paul Jewell | 34 years 313 days | 07/08/1999 | Bradford | Middlesbrough |
| Garry Monk | 34 years 339 days | 08/02/2014 | Swansea | Cardiff |
Crystal Palace also boast the youngest manager in Premier League history, having appointed Attilio Lombardo as a player-boss for the closing weeks for the 1997-98 season.
The Italian attacker, who played in a European Cup final with Sampdoria, did not prove to be particularly successful, however. In the eight matches he oversaw, he managed to record only a couple of wins and lost the other six fixtures, culminating in a 3-0 home loss against Manchester United.
By that stage, Palace had long been relegated.
Similarly, Chris Coleman and Gianluca Vialli, who are the second and third youngest managers respectively, were both initially interim appointments, though both proved more successful than Lombardo.
Indeed, Andre Villas-Boas is the youngest man on this list who was a full-time appointment straight off the bat. He joined Chelsea from Porto in the summer of 2011 but failed to complete a full season in charge, sacked after a 1-0 loss to WBA in March.
Jan Siewert, who was recently appointed as Huddersfield manager, is the youngest boss in the Premier League currently, aged 36, though he is only the 22nd youngest all-time.