Premier League managers who actually liked each other

The world of Premier League football can be a cold and unforgiving place.

Fickle fans, trigger-happy chairmen and unforgiving media all combine to make the life of a manager a very, very lonely one.

All the more surprising, then, that managers do not tend to seek solace in one another, to crave comfort in the shared knowledge that their time could be up at any point.

Antonio Conte claimed it was impossible, in the fierce, dog-eat-dog world of Premier League football, to have any kind of friendship with rival managers.

Asked recently if he was friends with any managers in the Premier League, Conte said: “Honestly, not now, no. Before, I had a really good relationship with Claudio Ranieri and after the awards for the best coach and the best player at Fifa, we went for a dinner with our wives.

“But I think it’s very difficult to speak about ‘friendship’ with other coaches because then they become an opponent. You can have respect, for the job and the work, but to speak about friendship is difficult.”

Once friends and colleagues at Barcelona, Pep Guardiola and Jose Mourinho's ongoing rivalry highlights how the pressures of elite-level management can corrode the bond that connects two people.

While it may prove 'difficult' for managers to maintain their friendships, there are still a number of examples that offer hope for the triumph of love over hate.

Jurgen Klopp and David Wagner

The original Premier League-manager bromance.

Having struck up a 'lifelong' friendship in 1991, Klopp asked Wagner to be the best man at his wedding in 2004.

Wagner even organised Klopp's stag-do, disguising the then Bundesliga manager as Santa Claus.

"In Germany, we have a Christmas market and in Mainz, they have one of the biggest Christmas markets in Germany," said Wagner, recalling the stag-do.

"We put Santa Claus masks on us and there were 25 Santa Clauses, because Jurgen was not able to go in the Christmas market as a normal person. But everybody recognised that here was a group to join Klopp to celebrate!"

Klopp and Wagner's relationship is the most current example of friendship transcending footballing ties.

Ahead of their first meeting as opposing managers earlier this season, Klopp admitted he 'cried like a baby' when Wagner secured promotion to the Premier League in May.

"I was in the South of France at a friends' house and we watched it on television," said Klopp, who decided not to go watch the play-off final at Wembley for fear of becoming a distraction.

"He asked me if I wanted to come, but I feel a little bit sorry for him as I really think he is big and strong enough, and what he has achieved so far is big enough, so nobody has to mention he is best man of Klopp.

"I did not want to come in the stadium and have one camera on me and see how I react when he should be, or his team, in the middle of all interest.

"I was nervous like hell. And afterwards, Ulla (Klopp's wife) sent him a video of me crying like a baby when it happened, the final penalty, as I could not stop."

Jose Mourinho and Aitor Karanka

Mourinho and Karanka forged a close personal relationship during the three seasons the pair spent together at Real Madrid.

After Karanka was sacked as Middlesbrough earlier this year, the Manchester United manager was vocal in criticism of the Boro board's decision to dismiss the former Madrid coach, despite guiding the Teeside club to the Premier League.

Mourinho gave a passionate defence of his friend and former colleague after his Manchester United side secured a 3-1 win over Middlesbrough - just days after Karanka's sacking.

"Aitor, he came here, 8,000/10,000 people in the stadium, almost went into the League One, then stays in the division, goes to the play-off final, could leave the club, decides to stay, gets promotion.

"He could leave the club (because I know what I'm saying), could leave for better (and I know what I'm saying), but he stays, he stays for the fans, he stays for the owner, he stays for the players.

"He lost the opportunity to go to a bigger club (I repeat: I know what I'm saying), and in the end he loses his job.

Pep Guardiola and Ronald Koeman

As graduates from Johan Cruyff's school of coaching philosophy, Guardiola and Koeman are two like-minded managers who enjoy a close relationship on and off the pitch.

The pair roomed together as players at Barcelona, with Guardiola insistent the period played a huge role in his footballing education.

"When Ronald needed water, he'd wake up to water from me. I was younger so I looked up to him. He was not just a room-mate, we spent a lot of time together and he was so generous. Not just on the pitch but off it too - I learned a lot from looking at him."

Koeman, who is currently out of work having been sacked as Everton manager earlier this season, says they still meet up to talk tactics and reminisce on old times.

"He doesn't pick my brains now. When we have dinner together we speak about nice stories from our time together at Barcelona. The dynamic is different. Now he is maybe the best manager," said Koeman.

"We have a really strong friendship. Now it's a bit easier because he's living in Manchester and I live close to Manchester, so sometimes we have time for dinner and to talk about football and life. We have spent many hours together, talking football."

Jose Mourinho and Marco Silva

Already being billed as the next Jose Mourinho, it seems the Manchester United manager has taken a personal interest in the Watford manager by taking his countryman under his wing.

“The fixture is a good opportunity for me to spend a little bit of time with him. Our relationship is very good.

We are friends. OK, our lives now mean we don’t see each other often, but he is a very good person and we exchange texts.

“Before the game we will talk a little bit with each other but once the match starts it is Watford against Manchester United and I want to win. I want to get another result.”

Silva was still playing domestic football in Portugal when Mourinho was making his name as a coach with Porto and the Hornets manager recently revealed his mentor offered him advice on working in the Premier League.

“When I wanted to know something about the Premier League when I was in Portugal or when I was in Greece the best person to talk to was Jose.

“He told me what you would expect, good things about the competition, the Premier League, the matches as well.

“Ok our life permits you don’t see each other many, many times but he is a very good person and tomorrow he is my opponent.

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