Premier League Sack Race
The Premier League is underway and that means someone is perilously close to losing their job. There is little room for error these days with massive amounts of money at stake for staying in the Premier League and even more for getting into those elusive Champions League spots.
So who is going to be the first to go?
Antonio Conté – After a disastrous start against relegation favourites Burnley, Conté has gone straight to the top of the bookies first to go list. Clearly not all is well behind the scenes at Chelsea, there are rumours of major unrest and the manager is apparently not happy with the clubs transfer dealings so far. Their title rivals have all spent big but the Champions have so far done very little. There is also the ongoing Costa saga. The player is refusing to return to play for Chelsea and as their top goal scorer last season it’s not an ideal situation.
Conté next manager to leave odds – 3/1 (4.0) Betfair
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Mark Hughes – Stoke have been very quiet in the transfer market, the players they have brought in have mostly been free transfers and loans. Couple that with them letting Marko Arnautović go to a league rival for a fairly paltry £20 million and Stoke are in danger of getting left behind. They put up a decent showing in the opening game but ultimately lost and with Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United all to come in the next few weeks Hughes could find himself under a lot of pressure very soon.
Hughes next manager to leave odds – 16/5 (4.2) Betfair
Slaven Bilić – West Ham have made some decent signings over the summer. Hernandez is a proven goal scorer in this league as is Arnautović who they signed from Stoke. Joe Hart has come in on loan and is a solid premier league keeper as well. So it’s a little bit surprising to see Bilić on this list. West Ham did however have a bad season last time around and did not adapt well to their new ground. They will have to hit the ground running at home this year or the fans may start to get restless. A dismal opening day will have added early pressure to the manager. Watching his side get completely outclassed at Man Utd will have been a worry, it will be interesting to see how the team reacts in their next game.
Bilić next manager to leave odds – 3/1 (4.0) Betfair
Rafael Benítez – Newcastle shot themselves in the foot on the opening day, with Shelvey needlessly getting sent off. They were under long spells of pressure in the game but were coping quite well until Shelvey’s moment of madness. The defeat won’t have come as much of a surprise as Spurs are going to be there or there about at the right end of the league this season. What will worry Newcastle fans is a recent interview with owner Mike Ashley where he basically stated Newcastle won’t be competing with most of their rivals on the transfer market and he refuses to pay the astronomical fees that have become the norm this summer. Benítez was already frustrated at Newcastle’s lack of signings and there have been rumours that he wants out all season. We don’t think he will be sacked anytime soon but he could be first out the door.
Benítez next manager to leave odds – 4/1 (5.0) Betfair
Frank de Boer – Having only recently come into Crystal Palace it’s pretty unlikely that de Boer is going to be the first to be sacked. However an opening day defeat to newly promoted Huddersfield was not exactly the best start to life in the Premier League. A humiliating 0-3 defeat at home was the worst possible start. de Boer is a manager who is determined to make a team play the style of football he wants regardless of whether he has the players to make the system work, that has to be worrying for Palace fans as the Premier League is a very unforgiving place.
Frank de Boer next manager to leave odds – 47/10 (5.7) Betfair
