Mid-season managerial swaps are rare but not entirely unknown in Premier League history; there have been only seven this century!

Unai Emery leaving Aston Villa for Manchester United would be by far the most sensational of all these moves.

Sometimes the grass is very much greener on the other side, and other times you’d find more greenery in the six-yard box of a non-league pitch during winter.

Here’s the last seven times a manager swapped one Premier League club for another and how it panned out:

Graham Potter: Brighton to Chelsea, September 2022
Graham Potter’s trajectory was only going one way before Chelsea. He was an English coach who had succeeded abroad, which a) made him very cool and b) earned him a move back to the UK.

A year in south Wales and Brighton poached him to make him the face of their continued rise up the English football pyramid, but like the Fast and Furious meme that shows two cars taking different paths, the subsequent fortunes of the seaside club and the manager could hardly have been more stark.

In fairness to him, Potter joined Chelsea at the peak of BlueCo’s madness. The club had just spent over £250m on nine players in a single window, of which just one player is currently at the club, and the far more experienced Thomas Tuchel had only worked with Todd Boehly and co. for a few months before their relationship broke down to such an extent that he was fired.

But while there are mitigating factors behind his failure, Potter also deserves a whole heap of the blame.

He tried to bring the tactical flexibility that had suited Brighton to Chelsea, who frankly did not want to hear it. He went from addressing dressing rooms bereft of major egos to one dominated by them. He also seemed to buy into his own hype, dressing smartly and having a ‘glow up’.

He lost almost as many games as he won and was sacked after seven months.

The right move?
For a manager who was in Sweden just four years previously, you cannot blame Potter for jumping at the first Big Six opportunity that came his way, but Chelsea was the worst environment for him to join.

It was lose-lose for club and manager with Potter failing to rebuild his reputation at West Ham and now back in Sweden, in charge of the national team where he is seen through a far kinder lens.

The only winners in this were Brighton, who were given a whole heap of money and appointed a better manager in Roberto De Zerbi.

Brighton record at time of his departure: 4th W4 D1 L1 F11 A5 Pts 13

Chelsea record at time of appointment: 6th W3 D1 L2 F8 A9 Pts 10

Brighton record since departure to end of season: 8th W14 D7 L11 F161 A48 Pts 49

Chelsea record from appointment to end of season: 14th W8 D10 L14 F30 A39 Pts 34

Brighton final position: 6th (down 2)

Chelsea final position: 12th (down 6)

Alan Pardew: Newcastle United to Crystal Palace, December 2014
As far as toxic relationships go, there are few more poisonous than late-stage Pardew and Newcastle.

Who could have foreseen that headbutting a player and telling a fellow manager to “shut your noise you f**king old c**t” would not endear you to the fans?

Meanwhile, the Pardew slide was in full effect. Newcastle were 10th at the time of his departure, equal on wins and losses.

Palace offered a convenient exit door for everyone. Newcastle got rid of a manager who was only midway through a ludicrous eight-year deal and Palace inherited a manager who would bring some much-needed enthusiasm.

Pardew predictably did well at Palace, taking them from 18th to 10th before the usual slide.

The right move?
Yes, for all three parties.

Newcastle lost their hated manager and even got compensation money. Pardew was free of an atmosphere that was described by the local press as ‘the worst personal abuse a Newcastle manager has had to endure at any game’ and Palace got a manager who could give them a pat on the back and convince everyone it will be alright.

It ended in failure as Pardew’s managerial stints so regularly do. The Eagles started 2016 with a run of 14 games without a win and only won two league games before the season was out.

Despite this, they reached the FA Cup final only for Pardew to once again embarrass himself with a stupid dance that looks even more stupid when you go on to lose.

Newcastle record at time of his departure: 10th W7 D6 L7 F25 A31 Pts 27

Crystal Palace record at time of appointment: 18th W3 D8 L9 F20 A30 Pts 17

Newcastle record since departure to end of season: 19th W3 D3 L12 F15 A32 Pts 12

Crystal Palace record from appointment to end of season: 6th W10 D1 L7 F27 A21 Pts 31

Newcastle final position: 15th (down 5)

Crystal Palace final position: 10th (up 8)

Owen Coyle: Burnley to Bolton, January 2010
Coyle chose to really rub salt in the wounds when he left Burnley for Lancashire neighbours Bolton when he said the Reebok club was “five or 10 years ahead” of his previous employers.

It was true of course, Bolton were an established Premier League outfit while Coyle had just taken Burnley back to the top flight for the first time in 33 years, but it was a poke in the eye to fans who had previously loved him.

His first game against his former employers saw him labelled Judas, although he claimed he should have been called Moses for leading them to the Premier League, which is a conflated metaphor whichever way you look at it.

Ultimately, Coyle kept his Premier League status while Burnley did not. His old club went down, a fate that could have been avoided had Coyle stayed.

But relegation would come for him too. Bolton went down in the 2011 campaign and he was sacked in October.

The right move?
You can make an argument for either side. On the one hand, Coyle did move to an established Premier League club and gained an extra season in the top flight, but the cost of that was his reputation at Burnley.

Had he stayed and kept them up, something that looked possible as they won their first four home games of the year, he would have been a Burnley legend. Instead, they hate him and Bolton fans see him as the man who took them down.

Burnley record at time of his departure: 14th W5 D5 L10 F22 A40 Pts 20

Bolton record at time of appointment: 18th W4 D6 L8 F26 A36 Pts 18

Burnley record since departure to end of season: 20th W3 D1 L14 F20 A42 Pts 10

Bolton record from appointment to end of season: 12th W6 D3 L11 F16 A31 Pts 21

Burnley final position: 18th (down 4)

Bolton final position: 14th (up 4)

Harry Redknapp: Portsmouth to Tottenham, October 2008
‘Don’t blame me’ were the very literal words of Harry Redknapp as he left a financially ruined Portsmouth for pastures new at Spurs.

While Pompey dealt with the greatest financial mismanagement of the Premier League since Leeds, Redknapp was given a great job at Tottenham.

Spurs already had a decent squad, despite Juande Ramos’ best efforts, and Redknapp was given money to spend in January. After guiding them to eighth, Redknapp was given even more money to spend in the summer, allowing him to assemble a squad good enough for fourth that year.

The club, now featuring a squad that had Luka Modric, Rafael van der Vaart and a young Gareth Bale, made it to the quarter-finals of the Champions League the following year, which was the peak of Redknapp’s time there.

Another fourth-place finish the following year had Redknapp full of confidence that he would be the next England manager, an open flirtation that Daniel Levy did not enjoy.

The two failed to agree a new deal and Redknapp was sacked in June 2012. The England job meanwhile went to Roy Hodgson.

The right move?
For Redknapp, absolutely.

He left a sinking ship at Portsmouth and joined a Spurs team on the up. He also delivered multiple Champions League qualifications and a quarter-final appearance.

Portsmouth record at time of departure: 7th W4 D1 L3 F9 A13 Pts 13

Tottenham record at time of appointment: 20th W0 D2 L6 F5 A12 Pts 2

Portsmouth record since departure to end of season: 16th W6 D10 L14 F29 A44 Pts 28

Tottenham record from appointment to end of season: 6th W14 D7 L9 F40 A33 Pts 49

Portsmouth final position: 14th (down 7)

Tottenham final position: 8th (up 12)

Steve Bruce: Birmingham to Wigan, November 2007
Bruce’s claims he was “shafted” by Birmingham executive Karen Brady over a new contract but the former United defender was wise to leave a messy situation.

He had guided them to the top flight, albeit with the largest budget in the Championship, but potential buyer Carson Yeung was unsure whether to go through with an already agreed extension.

Bolton came first to test the strength of that relationship but it was Wigan who offered Bruce a way out.

He returned to the club, which he had left after eight games in charge in 2001, and guided them to 11th. Birmingham meanwhile went down.

The right move?
It was a win-win for Bruce. He left an increasingly problematic situation at Birmingham and kept his new team up.

Birmingham record at time of departure: 15th W3 D2 L8 F13 A20 Pts 11

Wigan record at time of appointment: 19th W2 D2 L10 F10 A25 Pts 8

Birmingham record since departure to end of season: 17th W5 D9 L11 F33 A42 Pts 24

Wigan record from appointment to end of season: 10th W8 D8 L8 F24 A26 Pts 32

Birmingham final position: 19th (down 4)

Wigan final position: 14th (up 5)

Graeme Souness: Blackburn to Newcastle, September 2004
Replacing a man who would soon have a statue outside of the ground was the challenge that faced Souness when he went to Newcastle.

The club had just sacked Sir Bobby Robson, a fan favourite and local boy, meaning Souness was already on the back foot for simply not being Sir Bobby Robson.

He started his tenure with an unbeaten run of 10 games but his combustible nature mixed with a Newcastle dressing room that was increasingly hard to control led to poor results.

Kieron Dyer and Lee Bowyer scrapping on the pitch was symbolic of Souness’ entire tenure with the club only going down. He was sacked a year and a half later with Newcastle six points off the drop zone.

The right move?
No and no.

Newcastle brought in Souness to install some discipline which he failed to do, instead falling out with members of the squad like Craig Bellamy.

As for Souness, so bruised was he by the experience that he never took another managerial job. He even went as far as telling the Lancashire Telegraph: “My time at Newcastle soured my experience of management.”

Blackburn record at time of departure: 19th W0 D2 L2 F4 A8 Pts 2

Newcastle record at time of appointment: 17th W0 D2 L2 F6 A9 Pts 2

Blackburn record since departure to end of season: 13th W9 D13 L12 F28 A35 Pts 40

Newcastle from appointment to end of season: 10th W10 D12 L12 F41 A48 Pts 42

Blackburn final position: 15th (up 4)

Newcastle final position: 14th (up 3)

Glenn Hoddle: Southampton to Tottenham, March 2001
Hoddle headed back to Tottenham for a crack in the dugout but it was an appointment that did little for the club’s fortunes.

He lost the League Cup final and was knocked out of the FA Cup semi-final by Arsenal.

They finished ninth in the 2001-02 season followed by 10th the following year.

Then he could only manage four points from the opening six league games and he was given the sack.

The right move?
Probably yes, if only for the situation he left behind.

Being at Tottenham means staying in the Premier League, which is not a certainty for a club the size of Southampton, but going back did tarnish his Spurs legacy, even if just a small amount.

Southampton record at time of departure: 8th W12 D8 L9 F34 A34 Pts 44

Tottenham record at time of appointment: 11th W10 D9 L11 F36 A38 Pts 39

Southampton record since departure to end of season: 16th W2 D2 L5 F6 A14 Pts 8

Tottenham record since appointment to end of season: 13th W3 D1 L4 F11 A16 Pts 10

Southampton final position: 10th (down 2)

Tottenham final position: 12th (down 1)