by Darren Douglas

Created on: September 19, 2009

There are different ways that professional footballers choose or end up becoming managers after the end of their playing careers. As with anything some paths are easier or more successful than others. What is certain is that Alan Shearer started his managerial career in probably the deepest end that anyone ever has.

It has been suggested in recent years that there are too many former players becoming managers with too few Uefa coaching badges and qualifications, let alone experience. The fact is that whilst this may be true, not a great deal has changed in this aspect over the years and it's hardly a new phenomenon.

There are of course many examples of players who have jumped into management soon after the end of their careers and turned out to be unsuited to this side of the game. Just as frequently there have been plenty of other players who have taken to management and become some of the greatest exponents of the art.

You only need to look at Brian Clough and Kenny Daglish, between them the two had remarkable playing careers, even taking into account Clough's early retirement through injury. Clough soon went on to manage Hartlepool United at the age of just 30, Daglish would become Liverpool's player-manager in 1985 at the age of 34. The two of them went on to win 6 league titles, 2 European Cups, 2 FA Cups and 4 League Cups. Clough and Daglish remain as two of only three managers to ever win the league title with two different clubs in England.

One of Clough's former players Martin O'Neill is another example, he retired from a tremendous playing career after winding down at Notts County in 1985. His fledgling management path started less than two years later at non-league Grantham Town. Since then he has been highly regarded at almost every club he has managed as well as winning several trophies along the way.

Whilst some progress in management up the football tiers, there are others who have taken on huge challenges when beginning and yet have produced remarkable results. Take the England manager Fabio Capello, he also had an illustrious career playing for Roma, Juventus and AC Milan. Rather like Kevin Keegan he was relatively absent from the game for a few years after retiring, aside from the odd punditry. Whilst Keegan went on to guide his clubs to promotions and 'stability', Capello has famously won the league title with every club he has managed and in every spell!

Thankfully he is now guiding the England ship to South Africa for 2010, but when he was appointed

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