Carrera 11th manager to coach AEK since Super League return
Massimo Carrera has become the 11th manager to coach AEK since the Athens-based club returned to the Super League.
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On Sunday, AEK unveiled the signing of a 1.5 year contract with Italian manager Carrera, who previously won the Russian Premier League with Spartak Moscow in 2017. The 55-year-old replaces Nikos Kostenoglou with AEK currently sitting in third place of the Super League after 13 rounds.
Carrera is the 11th coach to manage AEK since the club returned to the top tier of Greek football in 2015. Let’s take a closer look at the previous 10:
Traianos Dellas
The 2004 European champion took AEK back into the big time. However, the ex-defender didn’t enjoy a great start to the 2015/2016 season, only tallying four wins, one draw and two defeats in the opening seven matches of the Super League campaign. Dellas was subsequently dismissed in October.
Gustavo Poyet
Poyet replaced Dellas at the AEK helm. Interestingly, data on Transfermarkt displays that his spell at AEK was statistically the best in his career, as he gained an average of 2.11 points per game. Nevertheless, he didn’t last long in Athens, departing the Greek capital before the 2015/2016 season had even ended.
Stelios Manolas
Drafted in as a caretaker coach, Manolas steered AEK to Greek Cup glory, defeating arch-rivals Olympiacos 2-1 in the final of the competition. Overall, Manolas picked up three wins, one draw and one defeat during his short time in charge of the Kitrinomavri.
Nikos Panagiotaras
Panagiotaras finished the 2015/2016 season as AEK manager after Manolas left. He was only the AEK boss for five games, claiming two victories, one draw and two defeats. Panagiotaras registered a points average of 1.40 in his five matches.
Temur Ketsbaia
Ketsbaia, the current Anorthosis Famagusta head coach, penned a deal with AEK in June of 2016. In truth, the Georgian didn’t fare particularly well in the Greek capital, receiving the sack in October after only achieving three victories, two draws and two losses. Ketsbaia later coached Orenburg in the Russian Premier League before he was employed by Anorthosis.
Jose Morais
Morais was another who didn’t spend a lot of time working with the Athenian club. After he replaced Ketsbaia, the Portuguese manager failed to make an impression with AEK, coaching the Enosis in 14 games and only picking up a points average of 1.21. Morais won three matches, drew eight times and conceded three defeats before he left the organisation in early 2017.
Manolo Jimenez
Jimenez had already coached AEK between October 2010 and October 2011.
In January 2017, the Spaniard decided to return to AEK, taking the club to the final of the Greek Cup and the qualifying rounds of the UEFA Champions League after winning the European playoffs. The 2017/2018 campaign then became an historic one for AEK, as Jimenez masterminded their maiden league title in 24 years and helped the team qualify for the Last 32 of the UEFA Europa League. Jimenez left when the season ended.
Jimenez was hired again by AEK in February 2019, as he replaced the sacked Marinos Ouzounidis. He was relieved of his duties in the summer after a disappointing end to he 2018/2019 campaign.
Marinos Ouzounidis
Initially, Ouzounidis made the perfect start to life as AEK coach, successfully negotiating two demanding qualifying rounds to take the organisation into the group phase of the Champions League. AEK also began the Super League season in positive form.
Sadly, the wheels soon came flying off for Ouzounidis and AEK, as the club struggled to cope with the demands of competing on both the continental and domestic fronts. Ouzounidis received the sack in February of this year.
Miguel Cardoso
Cardoso is a candidate for the worst AEK coach in recent years. Taking his questionable track record into account, many AEK fans were dubious about his appointment, and they were proven right as Cardoso quickly came a cropper. Poor results and dreadful performances resulted in Cardoso being hastily dismissed by Dimitris Melissanidis after just four games in charge.
Nikos Kostenoglou
Kostenoglou immediately created a productive, friendly atmosphere within the team, bringing the disjointed group of players together again. Results improved straight away as AEK defeated Trabzonspor, Asteras Tripolis, Lamia and Panetolikos in consecutive games.
The 55-year-old, however, began to struggle after two successive draws and a dip in performance level. Defeats to Olympiacos, Panathinaikos and OFI resulted in Kostenoglou being fired.
