League Table MW 10 : 2026 – 2027

Oliver Glasner is this weeks story. A week after the bleakest interview of his season his side beat Manchester City 3-1 and gave the best one: his players were so passionate from the first minute, they defended tactically smart, and he was honest that Forest rarely had the ball without being critical. Twelve out of twelve, and the Identity work reached Belonging, Esteem and Capability in a single answer.

Régis Le Bris climbs four places to 14= on 8.6. Sunderland were bottom, beat Chelsea, lost their captain inside four minutes, and he was offered the injuries, the suspension and the captain as ready-made excuses. He took none of them. After scoring a 1 and the 4 this season, both after defeats, he has now shown he handles a win. Whether he can lose well is still to be seen.

Michael Carrick is up three to 12th on a squad in the bottom three. Four-four at Old Trafford from two down twice, and his language was exactly what it has been all season: we never give up, we always keep believing, stated as a permanent fact about his players as they proved in the 96th minute.

Going the other way, Unai Emery drops two to 6th. Villa led 4-2 in the 90th and he shielded his players from the collapse, but the interviewer offered him an opportunity to highlight his sides attacking play and he answered “yes, but getting balanced” and never came back to it. A Villa player who scored at Old Trafford heard only about the two they let in. Xabi Alonso scored 5, the week’s lowest, repeatedly describing his players by what they were not.

These reviews look at how each manager’s post-match words help players keep their confidence, learn and prepare for the next match. The quotations are short extracts, followed by analysis.

Quote of the Week: Oliver Glasner, Nottingham Forest

Score: 12/12. Identity level: Belonging, Esteem & Capability.

You can never plan to win 3-1 against City because they are so good. But today, especially the players and our fans deserve this win because they were so passionate from the first minute, scoring nice goals. We had moments to suffer but then we could rely on our fans pushing us, supporting us. Amazing goals and such a great team effort today so really proud. I think we’ve had better performances in possession because today we rarely had the ball. Regarding the team spirit, the energy, I think it was our best game. The way we play football I think we’ve had many better games but how we defended, how passionately we defended, how tactically smart we defended, it was one of our better games.

I think it is the only way you can beat Man City. They’re so good, such great players, such a good structure and they move the ball so quickly. They can play through the middle, they have incredible dribblers on the wing and they have such pace. Then, of course, they have Haaland in the middle. You should control everything and if you want to control it, you have to run because you have to be so quickly aware. Of course you can just defend but you also need to go forward and this is what we did today in the right moments, we scored the goals in the right moments and credit again to the players. When you come in with a price tag on your back everybody believes if you pay so much, he has to score all the goals. We knew that he would score goals for us and today, they were nice ones.

Oliver Glasner after Nottingham Forest 3 – 1 Manchester City, Saturday 7 November 2026. Source: BBC Sport.

Glasner has just beaten Manchester City 3–1, but he makes no claim that everything went to plan. “You can never plan to win 3–1 against City because they are so good.” Instead, he explains what his players brought to the game: they were passionate from the first minute, defended with commitment and were tactically smart. These are SQAs, qualities his players can recognise in themselves and take into their next game.

He is honest about how difficult it was, without letting that overshadow their achievement. “We rarely had the ball,” he admits, and “we had moments to suffer”, but those were also the moments when they could rely on the fans to push them on. The pressure came from City, making it Other, and the difficult spells were Fleeting. His players’ passion, commitment and tactical intelligence are Self, Broad and Lasting. They leave knowing they have the qualities to compete with City and that being able to withstand pressure is part of doing it.

All of Oliver Glasner’s quotes this season

Low IDQ Quote: Xabi Alonso, Chelsea

Score: 5/12. Identity level: None reached.

What in particular, did anything disappoint you about your performance today?

Yeah, we were not creative, we were not creating enough chances on the final third against the low block, we were not moving the ball quickly, we were not controlling, sustaining the attack there and those situations you need to be patient, you need to work more the game and especially half-time we have spoken and there are many interruptions, but against that type of games we need to be more patient.

How difficult a man is Brian Brobbey to contain for your back four?

You can do it, we spoke, we’ve worked and yeah, obviously we didn’t do good enough, but we worked during the week to control his power and for sure in a few situations we didn’t do well.

I’ll bring you back to the key moments in the game, you looked unhappy with the decision, what are your reflections having presumably seen it back?

No, I haven’t seen it back, but I don’t know, nothing to comment on the referee, it’s something that it’s our fault, we could have done better.

Chelsea have lost to the bottom club, and Alonso repeatedly describes what his players failed to do. They were not creative, did not create enough chances, did not move the ball quickly enough and could not control or sustain their attacks. He follows this with another blunt assessment: they did not do enough.

Repeated so often, with no mention of their strengths, these criticisms begin to sound like a Lasting verdict on the players. There is no SQA to balance them. He does handle the penalty well, refusing to complain about the referee and accepting that Chelsea could have done better. That removes an excuse, but he offers little to help his players believe they can put things right.

All Xabi Alonso’s quotes this season

On SQAs: Unai Emery, Aston Villa

Score: 7/12. Identity level: Safety.

Was it in a way an illustration of where this new look Aston Villa team are at the moment? Because some of the things your team did were really, really good in spells in the game. Some of the attacking play was really good and really showed great potential. But maybe some of the other things, you know, the game management towards the end, it’s the whole learning curve thing of a new team bedding in.

Yes, but getting balanced because we were facing today Manchester United here in Old Trafford and always very difficult. And of course, they are getting better, but how we manage the match, the first half, the second half in 90 minutes, more or less. We have to try to get good things and through it, try to continue getting better and improving and feeling confidence. But still work to do, still small details, like for example, how we conceded at the time the two goals and how as well we can manage the first half. They were pushing, they were as well, threatening us, how we could stop them better than we did.

Are you a bit stunned by that? Because at 90 minutes, it didn’t look as if Manchester United were about to come back.

My opinion is different. I think they have very good players here in Old Trafford always is, the atmosphere is fantastic. I think with the coach last year, they were feeling good and confident and comfortable and getting points and playing Champions League. And this year they started a little bit, not like last year, but I think they will come back again. I think they will be very good.

Unai Emery after Manchester United 4 – 4 Aston Villa, Sunday 8 November 2026. Source: BBC Sport.

Villa led 4-2 at Old Trafford in the 90th minute and came away with a point, and the interviewer offers Emery the praise ready-made. Some of the attacking play was really good and really showed great potential. Emery’s answer is yes, but getting balanced, and he never comes back to the attacking play. The two goals and the first-half management get named twice each. Nothing his own players did gets named once. He isn’t harsh with them, and the protection is there: Old Trafford is always very difficult, and Manchester United are getting better, so the setback stays Other and says nothing about his players. Structure and game management are Emery’s Path and he gives them both. What is missing is the SQAs, the strengths his players already have, and a Villa player who scored at Old Trafford heard his manager talk about the two they conceded.

Emery drops two places. Michael Carrick, in the other dressing room and a point off the bottom three, kept telling everyone what his players never stop doing, and finished on 11.

All of Unai Emery’s quotes this season

How the scores work

I score six things: a clear aim (Towards Outcome); player strengths (SQAs); how setbacks are explained (Adversity); confidence (Identity); practical next steps (Path); and leadership after a win, loss or draw. Each category is worth two points, giving a maximum of 12. Two points means the language clearly supports the players, one means it offers some help, and zero means it offers little help or risks undermining them.

• Good Winner: using the confidence that comes with a win to help players improve. The manager recognises what worked and gives constructive guidance about what to do better next time.
• Good Loser: helping players keep their belief after a defeat. The manager keeps the setback in perspective, reminds players of strengths they can rely on and gives them a useful next step. Explaining a loss through a specific external event can help, provided the players also hear reasons to believe they can succeed.

After a draw, I look for a balance of ambition, confidence and practical guidance. Crediting the opposition is good sportsmanship, but earns no points by itself. Scores describe the interview reviewed, rather than everything a manager says or does.

The match result has no bearing on the score in this table. A manager can build confidence after a defeat or destroy it after a victory. Honesty needs to be handled carefully. A detailed account of every weakness may be accurate, but it can leave players with less belief in themselves. The manager must retain credibility while building the players’ confidence.

Which Identity level are they Addressing?

Identity is made up of the beliefs we build about ourselves over time. A manager’s words can strengthen or weaken those beliefs. We will track how each manager affects the five parts of Identity: Safety, Belonging, Esteem, Capability and Purpose. This will be recorded, although the individual levels do not receive a separate score.