Sir Alf Ramsey with Bobby Moore (Allsport).

By Rob Parrish, PA Sport

Without Geoff Hurst's hat-trick, England would not have lifted the World Cup in 1966.

But without manager Alf Ramsey's bold decision to select the West Ham player over regular first-choice forward Jimmy Greaves, Hurst would not have been on the pitch to score his memorable treble.

It was the kind of decision which makes good managers great, a title which can be bestowed on very few men in the history of the world game.

But Ramsey, who brought unprecedented success to Ipswich before the Football Association invited him to take over from Walter Winterbottom in May 1963, certainly deserves his place in the World Cup manager's hall of fame.

Hurst started the 1966 tournament as nothing more than a squad player, but was handed his chance when Greaves suffered a gashed leg in the final group game against France.

However, by the time the final arrived, Greaves was again fully fit and expected by many to reclaim his place from Hurst in the starting line-up, only for Ramsey to make what could be argued was the best decision of his career.

He also gave the team-talk of his career during the game after Germany had grabbed an equaliser with 88 minutes on the clock to take the match into extra-time.

Ramsey strode onto the Wembley turf, gathered his players around him and, pointing to the Germans, announced: "Look at them, they're finished."

Once Hurst had scored two more goals to become the first - and still the only - player to complete a hat-trick in a World Cup final, Ramsey was proved right.

Mario Zagalo landed on his feet when he took over from Joao Saldanha as Brazil coach after the qualifying stages for the 1970 tournament in Mexico.

Zagalo, who already had two World Cup winners' medals to his name, was in the enviable position of coaching a team which has been described as 'near-perfect' and boasted the talents of Pele, Carlos Alberto, Jairzinho, Tostao and Rivelino.

It was no surprise when Brazil lifted the Jules Rimet Trophy for a third time, but the style in which they captivated fans across the world with their dazzling displays, culminating in the 4-1 thrashing of Italy in the final, owed at least something to the guiding hand of Zagalo.

But it is not only managers who have led teams to the pinnacle of world football who deserve praise. Others have taken their charges to heights that could never be expected.

Russian Valeri Nepomniachi had more barriers than most to overcome when in charge of the Cameroon team in Italia 90.

Firstly, Nepomniachi had to communicate with his squad via an interpreter and secondly, they were up against holders Argentina in their opening match.

Against all the odds, Cameroon pulled off one of the biggest shocks in the history of the World Cup, defeating the South Americans 1-0.

But their adventure was not finished. Nepomniachi's side then beat Romania to secure a place in the second round, where they saw off Colombia to set up a quarter-final meeting with England.

The Russian came within seven minutes of guiding the 'Indomitable Lions' into the last four, only for Gary Lineker's late penalty, followed by a second spot-kick in extra-time, to end their dream.

Honourable mentions must also go to Waldir Pereira Didi of Peru, who took his side through to the quarter-finals in Mexico, and Rudolf Vytlacil who guided Czechoslovakia to the final in Chile in 1962 against all the odds, including a quarter-final victory over a very strong Hungary side.

But while some managers have flourished on the world stage, others have wilted, even with talented sides at their disposal.

Berti Vogts took charge of Germany for the 1994 tournament after the European giants had reached the final of the last three World Cups, including lifting the trophy in 1990.

But he could not guide an admittedly ageing side beyond the last eight, a bitter disappointment given Germany's standing in world football.

To make the pill even harder to swallow, Vogts side found themselves dumped out of the competition by the unfancied Bulgarians who, inspired by the great Hristo Stoichkov, came from a goal down to triumph 2-1.

Despite a barrage of criticism from the German media and fans, Vogts kept his job and was given the opportunity to make up for the mistakes of 1994 in France four years later.

But Vogts' side once again exited the tournament at the quarter-final stage, going down 3-0 to Croatia after goals from Robert Jarni, Goran Vlaovic and Davor Suker.

Javier Clemente also endured an unhappy time during the summer of 1998 as his Spain side travelled to France tipped as one of the teams to watch, especially with Real Madrid superstar Raul as the focal point for their forward line.

But all the expectation came crashing down after the first game as the Spaniards slipped to a 3-2 defeat at the hands of Nigeria.

Coach Clemente could not guide his side to victory against Paraguay as they drew 0-0 and despite a thumping 6-1 success over Bulgaria in their final group game, Spain were out, finishing third in their group behind the two teams they could not beat.

While many managers will plead mitigation because of bad luck, poor refereeing, injury problems or even a sheer lack of ability in their squad, some have been guilty of rank bad decisions.

Possibly the most striking example of this is Brazilian Ademir Pimenta, who almost certainly cost his country the World Cup in 1938.

Pimenta had at his disposal in France the sublimely-talented Leonidas, who had terrorised defences as the Brazilians reached the last four of the competition.

Leonidas' inspirational performances included a four-goal haul in the enthralling 6-5 extra-time victory over Poland, where he also played barefoot for some of the match.

Pimenta, foolishly, felt his side had enough in reserve to beat Italy in the semi-finals and left Leonidas out of his team, saying he was "resting" him for the final.

But the next game Leonidas was to feature in was the third place play-off against Sweden, where he scored twice in a 4-2 victory, as Italy went on to be crowned world champions as they followed up their 2-1 win over the Brazilians with a 4-2 triumph over Hungary in the final.

Ramsey and Pimenta - one a manager never to be forgotten, the other unlikely to be remembered.