(Photo by George Wood, Shaun Botterill, Maja Hitij/Getty Images)
When you realise that an anagram of Mikel Arteta’s name is ‘A Title Maker’, then perhaps it’s no surprise that the Spanish tactician finally ended Arsenal’s long wait to be crowned champions of England last season.
Okay, maybe that’s not the most scientific way to assess the qualities of a manager, but, for a bit of fun, what if anunscramble word tool could provide clues about what you could expect from them?
Read on for a look at some of the Premier League managers ahead of the 2026/27 season to see what we can make of the hidden meanings behind their names.
Mikel Arteta = A Title Maker
Arsenal’s title-winning manager - can he repeat the trick again for the Gunners next season? Also, in fairness, this anagram also proved relevant once in seven seasons, so you have to question the true strength it holds.
Bonus - rival fans might prefer ‘Ratlike team’ as this hasn’t always been the prettiest Arsenal side to watch, with many of their players mastering the so-called ‘dark arts’ of set pieces and defensive football. Probably a bit harsh to compare them to rats, though.
Enzo Maresca = A Scream Zone
Manchester City are set to start a new season without the long-serving Pep Guardiola, and this was never going to be an easy job, especially with growing speculation that Rodri could now be leaving as well. But will it be A Scream Zone under Enzo Maresca? City fans will hope it’s not quite that bad!
Andoni Iraola = A Radial Onion
Radial means “spreading out from acentralpoint”, which sounds vaguely like passing tactics that Liverpool’s new manager might employ. But onion? Nope, me neither.
Michael Carrick = Calmer Air Chick
Manchester United took a bit of a gamblehiring the inexperienced Michael Carrick as manager. It’s a huge job, with pressure unlike anything he’ll have had to deal with during his time in charge of Middlesbrough.
BUT…after an impressive spell as interim manager at Old Trafford, Carrick will have gained valuable experience, which means although he’s still a ‘chick’, he is at least learning to fly (in the air), and getting more calm at doing so. Yes that’s the metaphor we’re going with, and we’re very happy with it, thank you.
Xabi Alonso = Boil A Saxon
Nah this one’s too weird.
Oliver Glasner = Gorilla Nerves
We assume this is a good thing. You need nerves of a gorilla to guide Crystal Palace to their first ever trophy with that famous 1-0 win over Manchester City at Wembley. And to follow that up with a Community Shield and Europa Conference League victory the following season. A good hire for Nottingham Forest, especially when it looked for some time like this gorilla would surely be beating his chest at one of the top end of the table Premier League clubs.
Marco Rose = Roam Score
“Roam, score” sounds like pretty simple tactical instructions, but whatever gets the job done, eh?
Daniel Farke = Denial Freak
If things go badly for Leeds United this season, this perhaps suggests it will be down to Daniel Farke simply refusing to acknowledge and deal with the team’s problems.
Regis Le Bris = Gerbils Rise
This would be good if Sunderland’s nickname was the Gerbils rather than the Black Cats. Do cats catch gerbils? If so, this would perhaps point towards an unwanted fightback on the part of Sunderland’s opponents.
We hope you enjoyed these and please do comment with suggestions of your own!
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