Jimmy Hagan - Managerial Career

Managerial Career

Hagan started his managerial career with Peterborough United where he worked between 1958 and 1962. His period in charge saw Peterborough United promoted to the Football League for the first time, and, in 1960-61, their first season in the league, they won Division 4, scoring 134 goals. This remains a record number of goals scored in the English leagues. After leaving Peterborough, he joined West Bromwich Albion in 1963 leading the team to the Football League Cup in 1966. Sliding fortunes in the season thereafter put an end to this assignment.

His greatest successes were with S.L. Benfica in Lisbon where he led the club between 1970 and 1973 to three successive Portuguese championships and once to the national cup, a record no coach has since been able to repeat at the helm of the Águias. In this period Benfica also attracted Europe-wide attention when the team reached the semi-finals of the European Cup of Champions, where the team was only narrowly defeated 0-1 on aggregate by the legendary Ajax of that era.

In 1972-73 Benfica became the first club in Portugal ever to win the championship without defeats and won 28 matches - 23 consecutively - out of 30, and drew two, a feat only matched by FC Porto in 2010-2011 (although they won 27 and drew three). In that year Eusébio also became Europe's top scorer with 40 goals, in what was his penultimate season as a Benfica player. The team scored 101 goals, breaking 100 only for the second time in their history.

Jimmy Hagan separated from the club in September 1973 after an argument concerning the line-up for the testimonial match for Eusébio. Eusébio, with whom Hagan enjoyed a lifelong friendship since those days, described the coach as "a strong disciplinarian".

"All the players thought his training schedules were too punishing and some were physically sick after the first training session. But after a while, they realised it was worth it as we started winning games. He gave us the extra strength and he is the reason Benfica won three successive championships."

In 1975, he managed Grupo Desportivo Estoril Praia for the First Portuguese League. In Lisbon he also managed Benfica's local rivals Sporting in the 1976-77 season. He also had spells at Vitoria de Setubal, Belenenses and Boavista where he won the Portuguese Cup.