Manuel Pellegrini

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Lore & Background

Pellegrini was appointed as manager of West Ham United in May 2018, bringing with him a CV that included a Premier League title with Manchester City in his first season there, where he became the first manager from outside Europe to win the English top flight. At City, he also won the Football League Cup and guided the club to its first ever Champions League semi-final in 2015–16. Before that, he had managed Real Madrid for the 2009–10 season, amassing a club-record 96 points but finishing runner-up to Barcelona. He later lamented the Galácticos policy that prevented him from building a balanced team. At West Ham, Pellegrini lasted 18 months before being sacked in December 2019. The decision came after a miserable run of results that left the club hovering just above the relegation zone, a far cry from the European ambitions that had accompanied his arrival. His departure marked the end of a tenure that never quite matched the heights of his previous roles. The club moved quickly to replace him with David Moyes, but for Pellegrini, the West Ham chapter became a frustrating footnote in a career that had seen him win league titles in Spain, England, Argentina, and Chile, and take two different teams to the Champions League quarter-finals in their debut seasons in the competition.

In Their Own Story

The London Stadium had seen better days. Pellegrini, the Chilean engineer who had once outscored Barcelona with Real Madrid's 96-point season, now watched his West Ham side struggle to find rhythm. The 18 months had been a grind—a slow, painful unraveling of a plan that never quite clicked. When the results turned sour in December 2019, with the team flirting with the drop zone, the decision came swiftly. He was sacked, and the club moved on. For Pellegrini, it was a rare failure in a career that had included a historic second-place finish with Villarreal in 2007–08 and a Champions League semi-final with the same club in 2005–06. But at West Ham, the magic never materialized—just a quiet, frustrating fade.

Reader's Guide

Pellegrini's West Ham tenure began in May 2018, when he was appointed as manager. He had previously managed Manchester City, where he won the Premier League and Football League Cup in his first season, and took City to their first ever Champions League semi-final in 2015–16. Before that, he had managed Real Madrid for one season, achieving a club-record 96 points but losing the title to Barcelona by three points. He was dismissed after that season and later criticized the Galácticos policy. At West Ham, Pellegrini lasted 18 months. He was sacked in December 2019 after a poor run of results left the club in 17th place, just one point above the relegation zone. The club had hoped his experience—which included league titles in four countries and Champions League quarter-finals with both Villarreal and Málaga—would bring European football to east London. Instead, his tenure became a cautionary tale of how even a decorated manager can struggle to impose his vision on a struggling side.

Did You Know?

• Pellegrini was appointed West Ham manager in May 2018 and lasted 18 months before being sacked in December 2019.
• He is a qualified civil engineer, having graduated from the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile in 1979.
• Pellegrini was the first manager from outside Europe to win the Premier League, doing so with Manchester City in 2013–14.
• He took two different clubs—Villarreal and Málaga—to the Champions League quarter-finals in their debut seasons in the competition.
• Pellegrini retired as a player in 1987 after a 17-year-old Iván Zamorano scored against him, making him realize his time was up.