Four-man fight develops for West Ham job
Ten days have passed since West Ham decided to sack Avram Grant following their relegation from the Premier League and yet there is still confusion over who will take on the task of trying to get the club promoted from the Championship at the first attempt next season.
The normal next manager market pattern is for three or four candidates to gain support early on, the majority to pull out over the next few days and a new contender to emerge, with someone normally becoming the odds-on favourite within about a week and then being appointed.
The battle to be named West Ham's 14th boss hasn't unfolded that way though, as instead the initial frontrunner Chris Hughton has gradually lost support without actually being permanently replaced at the top of the market.
The consequence is that there are four men proving almost inseparable, the main reason appearing to be that despite declaring their intention to hire somebody before the end of May, the Irons co-chairmen David Sullivan and David Gold don't seem to have got too far into the recruitment process.
Hughton is still leading the way at [5.7], with his east London roots, spell at the Boleyn Ground as a play and second-tier title win with Newcastle two years ago all counting in his favour, however his price has drifted substantially given that he was at one stage backed at [2.12].
Sam Allardyce is the surprise mover at [6.0] despite rumours that he would rather hold out for a top-flight job, and those odds put him ahead of Cardiff manager Dave Jones ([6.4]), who confirmed earlier on Wednesday that he hasn't held talks.
Capping off the list of chief challengers is January target Martin O'Neill at [7.0], as the news that he has resolved his dispute with former employers Aston Villa has sparked speculation that he is now in a position to return to work, but he is sure to attract Premier League interest too.
Have you had a flutter on this market? If so, who did you back and why...
Published: 25 May 2011
iron sam (May 26, 2011 8:45 AM) said:
Which prem team would O,Neill go to? Not Chelski not back to Villa.