Early career Pereira started managing at junior level. His first head coach experience arrived midway through the
2004–05 season, when he was appointed at
Sanjoanense in the
third division. Subsequently, Pereira worked with
Espinho of the same league, being fired with ten games left in his
second campaign and returning to
Porto's juniors for a further season. In 2008 he returned to head coaching again, with
Santa Clara in the
Segunda Liga, leading the
Azores side to the third position in his
first year and the fourth in
the second, on both occasions narrowly missing out on
Primeira Liga promotion.
Porto In the summer of 2010, Pereira left Santa Clara to become assistant manager to
André Villas-Boas at Porto. On 21 June 2011, following the head coach's departure to
Chelsea, he was promoted to first-team manager, winning his first official match – and title –
2–1 against
Vitória de Guimarães in the
Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira. Despite a less than stellar performance both in
Europe – being knocked out of the
UEFA Champions League in the
group stage and in the
UEFA Europa League's
round of 32– and in the
Taça de Portugal, Pereira led the club to the
league title in his first season in charge. In March 2013, following the team's
elimination from Champions League contention (2–1 on aggregate against
Málaga), he came under heavy criticism, notably due to his decision of benching
James Rodríguez during the first half of both legs. The Colombian stated his disappointment in the coach's decision, but said that he respected him and trusted his reasons, adding that the situation was possibly created because of his questionable fitness, even though he claimed to be 100% fit. In early May 2013, as Porto ranked second in the league, Pereira deemed the Portuguese league as a "dirty competition". Only a few days later, after his team defeated
Benfica at home to surpass its opponents – eventually winning the
league title, conceding six draws in 30 games– he considered it to be a "highly competitive and prestigious league".
Five clubs in eight years in 2015 In late May 2013, Pereira was interviewed for the vacant job at
Premier League club
Everton, but eventually signed a two-year deal with
Al-Ahli of the
Saudi Professional League. On 7 January 2015 he moved countries again, replacing the fired
Míchel at the helm of
Olympiacos and eventually winning
the double. On 10 June 2015, Olympiacos announced a mutual contract termination with Pereira. The following day, he was appointed at
Fenerbahçe for two years. The Turkish side cut ties unilaterally with Pereira on 15 August 2016, with the case being subsequently taken to the
Court of Arbitration for Sport. On 18 December, he was named head coach of
1860 Munich in the German
2. Bundesliga, with the one-and-a-half-year deal being made effective the following 1 January. The team finished
the season third from bottom, and eventually got relegated on 30 May 2017 after a 3–1 loss aggregate loss to
SSV Jahn Regensburg in the play-offs. Pereira became the manager of
Shanghai SIPG on 12 December 2017, replacing Villas-Boas at the
Chinese Super League club. In his
debut campaign, he guided them to their first-ever title in the competition. In December 2019 he turned down a new approach from Everton and, one year later, left Shanghai. Pereira returned to Fenerbahçe on 2 July 2021, on a two-year contract. He was sacked on 20 December after a 2–2 home draw with
Istanbul rivals
Beşiktaş; his side were in fifth position and 14 points behind leaders
Trabzonspor. A month later, he was again linked with Everton as owner
Farhad Moshiri's lead candidate, prompting anger and vandalism from fans who saw him as inadequate and wanted eventual appointee
Frank Lampard instead; he defended his reputation in an interview on
Sky Sports News.
Corinthians in 2022 On 23 February 2022, Pereira was announced as head coach of
Campeonato Brasileiro Série A club
Corinthians, signing until the end of the year. He lost to an opening-minute goal away to
rivals São Paulo on his
Campeonato Paulista debut a week later, and the
state championship ended with a 2–1 semi-final loss to the same opponents. In October 2022, Pereira's team lost
the final of the
Copa do Brasil on
penalties to
Flamengo. Just hours after the last match of
the season on 13 November, it was announced that he would not renew his contract. He said in a social media post that he had to return home due to his mother-in-law's health.
Flamengo Shortly after leaving Corinthians, Pereira was appointed at Flamengo also of the Brazilian top flight. On 28 January 2023, his team
lost the
Supercopa do Brasil 4–3 to
Palmeiras. His second defeat took place on 7 February, 3–2 against
Al Hilal in the
semi-finals of the
FIFA Club World Cup after playing the entire second half with one player less. Later that month, they were
beaten on penalties by Ecuador's
Independiente del Valle in the
Recopa Sudamericana (1–1 over two legs). Pereira was dismissed on 11 April 2023, two days after
losing 4–3 on aggregate to
rivals Fluminense in the
Campeonato Carioca.
Al Shabab Pereira returned to the
Saudi Pro League on 4 February 2024, replacing the fired
Igor Bišćan at
Al Shabab on at a deal until the end of
the season. He took charge of the side when they were just four points above the relegation zone and led them to eighth place, subsequently renewing his contract until June 2025.
Wolverhampton Wanderers On 19 December 2024, Pereira was appointed at
Premier League club
Wolverhampton Wanderers on a contract lasting until June 2026; he replaced
Gary O'Neil with the task of avoiding relegation, with the team in 19th place and with just nine points from 16 matches. On his debut three days later, he oversaw a 3–0 away win over
Leicester City. On 5 April 2025, Wolves stretched its points total to 12 points above the relegation zone with a 2–1 victory at
Ipswich Town. The following weekend, after defeating
Tottenham Hotspur 4–2 at home, Pereira celebrated with fans at the Moon Under Water pub. On the 20th, they
confirmed survival with the 1–0 away win against
Manchester United, completing a league double over their opponent for the first time since the
1979–80 season. Pereira signed a new three-year deal on 18 September 2025, in spite of having lost the first four games of the
new campaign. On 2 November, however, with the side bottom of the table with just two points, he was sacked.
Nottingham Forest On 15 February 2026, Pereira took over as
Nottingham Forest's fourth manager of the season, agreeing to a contract until June 2027. ==Managerial statistics==