Eisenhower talking with members of the 101st Airborne Division before Normandy 4

Ike was not the greatest tactical commander, nor was he that exception a battlefield commander. He was a truly greater planner, of truly great general staff quality, a man you want to organize your army, but not control it in the field. Manstein was arguably the greatest commander of the 20th Century. I say this because before the launching of his operations like the attack on France, on the USSR, during Winter Storm, the counter at Kharkov and Kursk; I see him as being a man that would see the advantage in looking over reports an hour before the operation begins. But Ike, a unique and professional man, understand his men better then men like Manstein. He was able to understand the blow these paratroopers would take in the beginning of Overlord, and was able to understand that spending a few hours with his men was far more important then spending those hours over the situation table.