Dad Knows Best! 8 Times Footballing Fathers Gave Their Sons' Careers a Major Helping Hand

The most recent example on this list, Carlo Ancelotti’s decision to name his twenty-seven-year-old son Davide his deputy in his latest position with Bayern Munich was met with nothing less than bemusement . 

Whilst the elder Ancelotti has won league and cup titles in all five of the top European leagues, a feat which places him alone at the top pantheon of managerial greats, his son is a Sports Science Graduate, who’s only previous experience in football was as a fitness coach at Real Madrid (managed by, you guessed it, Carlo Ancelotti!)

Only time will tell if this is the start of a bright managerial career for Davide. One thing is for certain though – he certainly would not be in this position were it not for his famous father.

When one is looking to establish a career, it certainly doesn’t hurt to have an influential parent helping to guide your early successes.

This was the case for Al-Saadi Gaddafi, who was not so much guided in his football career, but rather had a path blazed for him by the unstoppable flaming chariot that was his father.

Having ruled over Libya with an authoritarian fist for 42 years, the seemingly natural progression was of course to make his son the captain of the national football team!

Al-Saadi also benefitted from his father’s connections in Italy, signing initially for Perugia with shamed Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson hired as a personal trainer, before ironically failing a drugs test. This, Somehow, did not perturb Sampdoria and Udinese from offering him professional contracts thereafter.

With just two appearances in a three-year European stint, this is a prime example of nepotism playing its part in football.

Indeed, if he did not have the name Gaddafi on his shirt there it could easily be questioned as to whether he’d have played professionally at all.  

From one multi-decade authoritarian to another!

Whilst Alex Ferguson was leading Manchester United to an incredible 38 trophies in 26 years as manager, his son Darren initially looked to forge his own path in the professional game as a midfielder.

With his father’s guiding hand, he was brought through the ranks with the Red Devils, eventually winning a Premier League winner’s medal in 1992/93 after making fifteen unspectacular appearances.

It was following his move into management, however, where the Darren truly benefited from his father. After providing glowing recommendations for his son regarding jobs with Peterborough and Preston, the older Ferguson took his revenge when Darren was eventually let go in both cases.

With the former, that was by terminating the loan of young starlet Danny Welbeck; with the latter, he took it a step (or two) further, instantly cancelling loan deals for three United youngsters who had been regular starters at Deepdale, including a youthful Josh King.

Even from afar, Fergie was not to be messed with.

The World Cup is the true pinnacle of the game – the tournament in which all players, from young boys to established professionals, aspire to play. 

It would take a spectacular fallout then for a player to voluntarily give up his chance to play in one. 

This was the case for Dusan Petkovic, whose father Ilija’s decision to call him up to the Serbia & Montenegro World Cup squad in 2006 caused a storm in the country.

Drafted in as an injury replacement for lost star Mirko Vucinic, the thirty-two-year-old Dusan was a journeyman striker who had only made a handful of appearances in the years prior to his call up.

With this in mind, the decision to take him to Germany was met with vitriol, with professionals and fans alike decrying the decision as scandalous. 

In the end, Petkovic Jr chose to fall on his sword and withdraw from the squad, stating: ‘‘The pressure was too strong for me, my father and my team-mates. I don’t want to be part of that, and I won’t travel to Germany.”  

Despite what might be commonly believed, Harry Redknapp wasn’t the only father figure in Nico Kranjcars life.

In fact, he was overshadowed by Nico’s own father Zlatko when it came to fawning over the, admittedly brilliant, Croatian playmaker.

As manager of a talented Croatia team featuring the Kovacs brothers, Ivica Olic and youngsters Darijo Srna & Luka Modric, Zlatko was expected to lead the nation to a credible finish.

However, his insistence on a 3-4-1-2 formation that implanted Nico into a playmaking role at the detriment of the teams balance lead to disastrous consequences. The team returned home without a win, and Zlatko never managed professionally again.

In hindsight, with his son already viewed with disdain in some quarters, following a highly controversial move from Hajduk Split to Dinamo Zagreb, perhaps this was not the best course of action.

It’s hard to comprehend the pressure that comes with having a father who, in many respects, is viewed as the most talented European player of his generation. 

Spare a thought then for Jordi Cruyff, whose father Johan is an icon in their native Netherlands and spoken of in the same breath as Pele and Maradona around the world.

That is not to say, however, that his father did not do everything he could to make his son’s career a success. Naturally, the younger Cruyff started his career with Ajax, where his father had starred before him.

Thereafter, Johan took his son with him to Barcelona, where Jordi’s spell was unfortunately most associated with an, at the time, unprecedented two year trophy drought.

Jordi’s career petered out thereafter, with another unsuccessful spell at Manchester United before eventually ending his disappointing career in Malta.  

Admittedly one of the better players on this list, Alex Bruce nonetheless strongly benefitted from the guiding hand of his father, former Manchester United hard man Steve.

Indeed, it is easy to see where accusations of nepotism have come from. A bruising centre half like Steve, Alex has followed his father to both Birmingham and Hull City. Whilst the latter spell was hugely successful for the family, the former was not so happy.

Constant speculation in the press as to the ability of the player, coupled with some publicised falling outs with other members of the team, lead the younger Bruce to force a move to Ipswich so as to remove himself from an extremely difficult situation.

Alex has since gone on to prove himself a serviceable Premier League centre back.  

Our final entry on the list follows the tale of two Pulis’: Tony, the now established Premier League manager and Anthony, his son/favourite player. 

Whilst Pulis Sr. handed his son his first professional opportunity at Portsmouth, he conspired to make only one paltry appearance in four years as a professional. 

Thereafter, as manager of Stoke he once again sought out his son and brought him along for the proverbial ride; following a turbulent spell where he found himself sacked by the Potters, Tony found himself in charge of Plymouth Argyle. Unsurprisingly, Anthony followed on loan. 

The onset of his second spell at the helm of the Potters coincided with a shiny new contract for Junior. Indeed, in four total years at Stoke, Anthony conspired to make a whopping two appearances.

He ended his spell as a professional with Orlando City in the United States, who, shockingly, happen to be a Stoke feeder club.