No clear favourite in West Ham boss hunt
A day after West Ham gave Avram Grant the sack immediately after the 3-2 defeat at Wigan that confirmed their relegation from the Premier League, there is still no standout candidate to replace him as their owners shop for a manager to guide them out of the Championship at the first attempt.
David Gold has revealed their intention to find a replacement within the next fortnight or so in order to give the new man in charge plenty of time to sort out his squad for what is sure to be a testing first campaign back in the Football League, though there is no early indication as to who that will be.
Steve McClaren is the favourite at [4.1] following gossip that a deal was in place but according to Sky Sports, a source close to the former England chief has denied being in contact with West Ham, yet those comments haven't done enough to convince punters that he won't be heading to east London.
Second in the running is Chris Hughton, who spent some time at the Boleyn Ground as a player and won the Championship with a club on the decline two years ago at Newcastle, before being harshly axed in December. It is currently [4.7] that he will be hired to perform another resuscitation job.
Every other contender is available to back at double figures, indicating that nobody - including the Irons board quite possibly - has any real idea who will be their 14th ever manager and that there is therefore big money to potentially be made sticking a few quid on an outsider that takes your fancy.
The names floating close to the top of the market include Brighton boss Gus Poyet ([11.0]), top-flight regular Sam Allardyce ([12.0]), Premier League-bound Neil Warnock ([12.5]), January target Martin O'Neill ([12.5]), one-time Hammer Slaven Bilic ([13.0]) and previously promoted Roberto Di Matteo ([13.0]).
Look at the opinions here and share your opinion on the ideal choice below...
Published: 16 May 2011
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