Life After Fergie: ABZFP Power Rankings

How do our managerial appointments post-Fergie fare when chucked into the ABZFP blender?

With the Dons recent appointment of Stephen Robinson to the “Head Coach” role at AB24, we thought it was time to take a look back at how our managerial appointments have fared since the departure of our most successful gaffer in the shape of Sir Alex Ferguson.

Fergie swapped Pittodrie for Old Trafford in November 1986, he didn’t just leave a vacancy in the dugout - he left behind a colossal shadow for his successors to follow. This is not a unique position that Aberdeen Football Club finds itself in, you need only cast your eyes southwards to Manchester to see just how difficult a task it is to measure up to the high standards that Ferguson instilled in the North East of Scotland and England’s North West.

Since his departure, seventeen men have stepped into the Pittodrie hot seat.

Some delivered silverware and European nights under the lights, while others brought us 9-0 thrashings and relegation dogfights.

Let’s take a deep dive into every permanent boss who has tried to carry the torch - we’ll look at their pre- and post-Pittodrie careers, their Dons record, and finally, rank them all on our definitive, rigorously tested ABZ Points Matrix.

(Note: Caretakers and interims are excluded from review).

Ian Porterfield (1986–1988)

• Record: P90 | W44 | D33 | L13 | Win %: 49%

• Pre-Aberdeen: Most famous for having scored the only goal in the 1973 FA Cup Final as Sunderland overcame the odds to beat Leeds United. Cut his teeth at Rotherham United and Sheffield United, where he won two promotions.

• Post-Aberdeen: Managed Chelsea (becoming the first manager to be sacked in the Premier League era), Reading - became a true globetrotter, taking charge of national teams like Zambia, Saudi Arabia, Zimbabwe, Oman, Trinidad & Tobago and Armenia.

Being the immediate successor to Sir Alex was a difficult task in and of itself and the selection of Porterfield was a curious one to say the least.