THE NEXT EPL MANAGER TO BE SACKED?
THE 2020/21 Premier League season was a fairly modest one in terms of sackings, as only four managers – Jose Mourinho, Chris Wilder, Frank Lampard, and Slaven Bilic – lost their jobs prematurely.
The new season has already seen its first sacking, after Xisco Munoz was given the boot by Watford recently. There are almost definitely going to be a few more sackings by the end of the season, and history suggests that someone else will either be sacked by the end of the year or early in the new year.
This week, we look at the likeliest names to soon get the sack.
Steve Bruce (Newcastle)
When Bruce was appointed as manager of Newcastle three seasons ago, it was largely met by frustration by the fans of the Magpies. Not only does Bruce not have an impressive managerial CV, but his appointment was also seen as an act of disrespect to fans, given his previous spell as manager of Newcastle’s bitter-rivals Sunderland, between 2009-2011.
With Mike Ashley’s tenure at Newcastle now finally over, the new owners will surely try to act quickly to rebuild the club. Bruce will not last much longer before a change is made.
To be fair to the 60-year-old, he has not been bad at the helm of Newcastle. He has kept the club alive in the Premier League, albeit while working in challenging conditions and with a limited transfer budget.
Claudio Ranieri (Watford)
Ranieri may be a legend in his own right but, since parting ways with Leicester City in 2017, he has been a journeyman. His stint with Watford marks his fifth since leaving the Foxes.
The situation that the 69-year-old finds himself in, at Vicarage Road, is similar to the one he found himself in during his short stint with Fulham between 2018-19.
The Hornets have a tough run of fixtures before the close of the year, which will see them play against the likes of Liverpool, Manchester United, Leicester, Chelsea, and Manchester City.
If Ranieri is unable to navigate the club to a stable position, he may not last long.
Ralph Hasenhuttl (Southampton)
Hasenhuttl is a good manager, and some will argue that he should now be managing a club with European football status. The German has done well to keep the Saints in the Premier League but, after almost three years, he may have plateaued in terms of what he can achieve with the club.
If Southampton are involved in another relegation scrap this season, they could be tempted to go for a fresh change and new tactics.
Patrick Viera (Crystal Palace)
The appointment of the French football legend was a gamble that Palace took.
He had no prior experience managing in England, and generational football greats rarely turn out to be fantastic managers.
Viera has been thrown into a challenging situation at Palace, and is working with a young crop of players. Should the club be thrown into the relegation scrap, they may just feel that they will be in safer hands with a more experienced Premier League manager in the calibre of Big Sam (Allardyce).