Football Manager 23 Best Coaches
A list of some of the best coaches you can sign on your FM23 saves
Coaches are a vital part of your backroom staff on Football Manager. Not only do they provide invaluable feedback when it comes to team talks and talent reports, they’re the ones tasked with developing your players on the training pitch. Here’s a few of the best coaches to sign in Football Manager 23.
Scroll down to see our recommendations. If you want more FM23 pages, click here.
Our lists of the best FM23 staff
How important are coaches in Football Manager 23?
Finding and signing the best coaches in Football Manager 2023 is a key element of building a successful club as you embark on your save.
In this guide, given we expect the vast majority of you to start saves with teams below the elite level, we have compiled a list of coaches we don’t just believe are good, but also mostly easily attainable. So there will be no Pepijn Linders or Rodolfo Borrell in this list.
Hiring the best staff in FM should be as important to your club as finding the best wonderkids, assistant manager, director of football, head of youth development, and scouts, so be sure to pay attention to your staff.
You can read more about coaching assignments on our FM23 guide page, including managing their workload, ensuring that you have the highest star coaches in each category, as well as lots of other man-management information.
While we will focus on the core attributes for each role on this page, also bear in mind that other mental attributes such as motivation, adaptability, personality, determination and level of discipline will also have an impact in how your coaches perform.
How do you find the best coaches in Football Manager 23?
The quickest way to do so is by utilising the staff search tool, which you can find on the left-hand side of the screen. By using that tool, you can specify your search by multiple different variables to suit your needs. Add them to your shortslists too.
Another good tip to find the best coaches in FM23 is by cycling through club and national teams’ backroom staff. The best coaches will often be with the best teams.
How do you assign coaches in Football Manager 23?
To assign coaches in FM23, go to the training tab, and then under coaches there is an ‘edit coach assignments’ button. In this window, you can ask your assistant to auto-assign your coaches into their best roles.
Make sure that the workload is spread evenly. By doing so, you maximise your coaches’ capacity. If you overwork them, then the quality of their coaching will drop and your players won’t develop as quickly as they should.
Best goalkeeper coaches in FM23
Goalkeeper training consists of two parts: shot-stopping and handling. Correlated with this, goalkeeper coaches will have GK shot stopping and GK handling (and also distribution) attributes.
Distribution will fall under the banner of handling, so bear that in mind when you are selecting a coach to take control of handling training.
Flávio Tênius
- Club: Unemployed
- Qualifications: Continental Pro
- Tactical style: Fluid Counter-attack
- Expected wages: €2,000 p/w
- Reputation: 0.5 stars
After a long stint at Botafogo, Flávio Tênius is looking for work. With a 0.5 star reputation, great, rounded stats to work either goalkeeper coaching role, and an affordable wage that should be within the price range of plenty of smaller clubs, he is a great starting point to boost your GK coaching ranks.
Adriano Bonaiuti
- Club: Internazionale (ITA)
- Qualifications: Continental Pro
- Tactical style: Vertical Tiki-Taka
- Expected wages: €8,000 p/w
- Reputation: 3 stars
An almost 10-year goalkeeping coach of Italian giants Inter Milan, Adriano Bonaiuti is the crème de la crème of goalkeeping coaches in FM23. To get him though, you’re going to have to pay up, with a hefty wage and imposing compensation fee that Inter will demand in order to release him from his contract.
Best defensive coaches in FM23
Having a five star rating for defensive training might be close to impossible, but that does not mean it should be neglected.
Be sure to have one coach with a strong technical and one with a strong tactical attribute to cover your bases best. Defensive coaches do tend to be the hardest to come across, but here are a select few to keep in mind.
Giuseppe Baresi
- Club: Internazionale (ITA)
- Qualifications: Continental Pro
- Tactical style: Catenaccio
- Expected wages: €7,000 p/w
- Reputation: 3 stars
Giuseppe Baresi has been part of the furniture at Inter for almost 40 years as a player, head of youth development, assistant manager, coach, and now as a scout. But, for the right price (albeit a steep one) he can be convinced to join your club as a coach. With high level tactical and defending attributes, he profiles as one of the best tactical defensive coaches in the game.
Miguel Quaresma
- Club: Unemployed
- Qualifications: Continental Pro
- Tactical style: Direct Counter-attack
- Expected wages: €5,000 p/w
- Reputation: 3 stars
Miguel Quaresma is a disciple of the legendary Jorge Jesus, following him around Portugal with Braga, Benfica and Sporting, before moving with him to Saudi Arabia to join Al-Hilal. While he is nominally a head of youth development, he can be signed as a coach. And he brings to the table a balanced set of the key fundamental attributes for a technical defensive coach.
THE BEST YOUNG TALENTS IN FOOTBALL
Best possession coaches in FM23
For the best possession coaches, consider their mental attribute to be a synonym for possession.
Look for one coach with strong mental and technical attributes, and another with strong mental and tactical ones to ensure the highest quality of training in each category: tactical and technical possession training.
Michele Salzarulo
- Club: AS Roma (ITA)
- Qualifications: Continental Pro
- Tactical style: Vertical Tiki-Taka
- Expected wages: €5,000 p/w
- Reputation: 3 stars
Nominally a performance analyst in game, Michele Salzarulo can switch over from his role as head performance analyst at Roma to do a coaching role for your team for the right price. As a tactical possession coach, he brings a nice set of attributes at a fairly affordable wage, though you will need to stump up a fairly sizable compensation fee.
Nuno Gomes
- Club: Unemployed
- Qualifications: Continental Pro
- Tactical style: Gegenpress
- Expected wages: €5,500 p/w
- Reputation: 3.5 stars
Another coach that is nominally a head of youth development, but will happily sign for you as a coach at the right price, is former Benfica, Fiorentina and Blackburn Rovers striker Nuno Gomes.
With 79 caps and 29 goals to his name Gomes brings plenty of experience from his time as head of youth development at Benfica’s esteemed Seixal academy. If you need a technical possession coach (or attacking coach) – he’s your man.
Best attacking coaches in FM23
You are not going to be building the best Football Manager squad without scoring bucket loads of goals. Obviously, player recruitment is key here, as well as your tactical set-up, but having good coaches in this area will give you marginal gains, and help you improve youngsters in your squad as well.
Like defending and possession training, you will need to look for a coach with a good tactical attribute and one with a strong technical attribute to go alongside high-level attacking.
Dennis Bergkamp
- Club: Unemployed
- Qualifications: Continental Pro
- Tactical style: Control Possession
- Expected wages: €4,500 p/w
- Reputation: 3 stars
He’s a man that needs no introduction. Former Ajax, Inter and Arsenal legend Dennis Bergkamp is unemployed after spells coaching at Ajax and Almere City. Bergkamp is readily available, and attainable even for second division clubs, with a fairly reasonable wage. He is undoubtedly one of the best technical attacking coaches in the game: no surprise when considering his technical ability as a player!
THE BEST YOUNG TALENTS IN FOOTBALL
Best fitness coaches in FM23
High-level fitness coaches are probably the easiest to find. Again, training is split into two parts, but this time it is quickness and strength training. However, the same attributes cover both categories, meaning that coaches are interchangeable between the two.
More than any other coach, keep in mind the determination, level of discipline and determination attributes on your fitness coaches to help get your players through some gruelling sessions.
Mário Monteiro
- Club: Unemployed
- Qualifications: Continental C
- Expected wages: €2,000 p/w
- Reputation: 3.5 stars
After leaving Benfica after Jorge Jesus’ departure, Mário Monteiro is a free agent with plenty of experience and some of the best attributes for a fitness coach in the game. If you can get him in: do it. His 3.5 star reputation presents itself as a barrier, but he is a no-brainer if he is willing to join your club.
Anthony Colbert
- Club: Unemployed
- Qualifications: None
- Expected wages: €1,800 p/w
- Reputation: 2 stars
After 20 years at Arsenal as a key member of Arsène Wenger’s loyal backroom staff, Tony Colbert is now a free agent following a short stint at lower-league side Southend United. With a 2 star reputation and low wages, he is a fitness coach you should be targeting early to whip your squad into shape.
Dennis Bergkamp, Giuseppi Baresi, Anthony Colbert, Dirk Mack, Adriano Bonaiuti, Michele Salzarulo and Mario Monteiro are a selection of the best coaches in FM23.
To get more coaches, you will need to ask your board. Whether they say yes or no is determined by a few variables such as how many coaches you already have, your own manager determination attribute, your manager performance rating, your club’s financial position, and so on.
Don’t be afraid to keep asking for more coaches when the possibility allows. If you don’t ask, you won’t get – and there is no detrimental effect of asking too many times.
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