NO-NONSENSE MOYES SET TO DUMP £25M HAMMERS FLOP ARNAUTOVIC IN JANUARY
DAVID MOYES could axe £25million flop Marko Arnautovic in January.
The Hammers’ new boss has been given full backing to bin any underperforming players.
And Arnautovic, the
TONY PULIS celebrated a milestone 14 months ago, after taking charge of his 1,000th game as a manager.
Three months ago, he signed a new contract at West Brom to keep him there until 2019.
This week, Pulis (above) has been pictured sunning himself on a beach in Barbados, in the middle of what he describes as the worst run of his career. How dare he enjoy a holiday with his club in crisis? It seems a bit of a cheap shot at a very dedicated manager.
West Brom have managed just two wins from their last 20 Premier League games and, rather than pushing on this season, are 16th – a point above the relegation zone.
Management is a thankless task when you are outside of the top four, because there is a glass ceiling likely to stop you breaking into the Champions League places.
In fact, making the jump into a European spot has become nigh-on impossible, when you consider Arsenal and Manchester United finished fifth and sixth respectively last season.
Chelsea, Manchester City, Liverpool and Tottenham finished in the top four last term. Meanwhile, Everton spent £150million in the summer to try and move up – and ended up hurtling towards the relegation zone before sacking Ronald Koeman.
The Baggies are a steady club, who finished in mid-table before Pulis, and will probably end up there again if they stick with him, despite the warning signs.
West Ham have been loyal to managers but finally pulled the trigger on Slaven Bilic to bring in David Moyes (below) as his replacement. The problem for virtually every boss outside of the top six is that they face an impossible task because, if they overachieve and raise standards, they could be sacked the following season for not living up to expectations.
Leicester dumped Craig Shakespeare and brought in Claude Puel, who has given them the “new manager bounce”. But will it work for Swansea if they replace Paul Clement? There are no guarantees.
It has been by no means a success for Mauricio Pellegrino at Southampton. There are some dissenting voices in the background.
The only guarantee is that the vast majority of managers in the Premier League are now under pressure and gone are the days of stability and longevity.