Sir Alex Ferguson, for his accomplishments with Manchester United has rightly been awarded the manager of the year. But the manager who has done a fantastic and successful job under the most difficult of circumstances; the award must go to Chelsea’s Rafael Benitez

Rafael Benitez Chelsea ‘interim’ manager

Benitez, with all the odds stacked against him, managed to guide Chelsea to a successful season, even though labeled the “interim” manager. Benitez won the Europa League and guided Chelsea into next season’s Champions League with a third-place finish in the Premier League.

Benitez, took over for the sacked Roberto Di Matteo, during a spell when the club was in free fall, which culminated with them being knocked out of the Champions league at the group stages and no longer being able to defend their crown.

Rafael Benitez’s had a fractious history with the Chelsea fans and he was a hugely unpopular choice with both players and fans based upon the rivalry that he had built up with Chelsea fans and then manager Jose Mourinho after making unpopular statements about the club.

He eventually won them both over by getting results and by making the tough choices.
His stint at Chelsea has gone a long way towards repairing his reputation and making him again a sought-after coach by the top European clubs.