Premier League sack race: Van Nistelrooy leads while Postecoglou is still in danger | OneFootball

As the 2024/25 Premier League season enters crunch time, the stakes are getting higher for the clubs and managers alike.

One of the strangest campaigns since Leicester City’s iconic triumph in 2015/16 has already seen six managers lose their jobs.

Despite lifting domestic cup trophies in back-to-back seasons, Erik ten Hag was the first to go as Manchester United sacked him in October.

Less than a month later, the Foxes cut Steve Cooper loose after an underwhelming start to their comeback top-flight season.

December was the scourge of Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Gary O’Neil and Southampton’s Russell Martin.

West Ham United relieved Julen Lopetegui of his duties toward the end of the last calendar year after only six months.

Sean Dyche became the latest managerial casualty in January, doubling the total number of dismissals compared to the entire 2023/24 campaign.

However, with the season nearing its conclusion, some managers may start feeling the heat, prompting betting sites to update their odds on who might be next.

Van Nistelrooy on the brink

Leicester’s hopes of turning their fortunes around by dismissing Cooper proved nothing more than wishful thinking.

Ruud van Nistelrooy, who picked up the mantle in November, saw off West Ham 3-1 on his touchline debut, giving the Midlands faithful false hope.

Everything since has been doom and gloom for the Foxes. With only nine games left, they entered March’s international break nine points adrift of safety.

A 3-0 home defeat to Man Utd on the stroke of the two-week hiatus from club football condemned Van Nistelrooy’s charges to a seventh consecutive league loss without a reply.

After making an unwanted Premier League history, the Dutch legend looks set for an early exit, with the bookies considering him the front-runner in this ignominious race.

All eggs in one basket for Ange

Stuck ten points behind 10th-placed Bournemouth, Tottenham Hotspur will probably have to settle for a first finish outside the top ten in 17 years.

Unless we witness a once-in-a-lifetime miracle, Spurs will finish outside the European spots. The pressure on Ange Postecoglou will likely reach new heights.

With just a handful of games remaining, Tottenham’s only chance of salvaging their season is to bring home their first piece of silverware since 2008.

That’s also the only chance for Postecoglou to save his job as the Londoners pursue Europa League glory, having set up a quarter-final tie against Eintracht Frankfurt.

Ivan the ‘Terrible’

Southampton hoped to recover from their dire start to their top-flight return by making a change in the dugout, only to face utter disappointment.

The Saints have set one foot in the Championship, trailing 17th-placed Wolves by a whopping 17 points amid one of the worst seasons in Premier League history.

Ivan Juric, brought in to save the club from a certain doom, will likely wave goodbye to St Marry’s in June despite penning a year-and-a-half contract in December.

Juric’s contract on the south coast includes a summer break clause, making him among the hottest Premier League managers to leave next.

From dream to nightmare

When Man United announced Ruben Amorim’s appointment on the eve of November’s international break, the devastated club supporters were filled with renewed hope.

The highly anticipated arrival of the highly-rated Portuguese manager was meant to signal a fresh start, a new chapter after more than a decade of turmoil.

However, what should have been a dream has quickly turned into a nightmare, with the 40-year-old failing to steady the ship after finding wreckage in Ten Hag’s wake.

Despite facing a first bottom-half finish in the Premier League, the Red Devils will likely stick with Amorim and provide him with significant financial backing in the summer transfer window.

But that doesn’t change the fact he hasn’t been the ‘Lightbringer’ many Man Utd fans had hoped him to be.

Italian job could still go wrong

Last but not least, Enzo Maresca completes this unenviable top-five list.

Chelsea were in the title conversation in December before a dreadful run of four victories from 13 league outings compromised even their top-four hopes.

A gut-wrenching 1-0 defeat to bitter rivals Arsenal last weekend ramped up the pressure on the Italian manager, even though the Blues finished the round in fourth, a point clear of Manchester City.

While things haven’t gone smoothly for the London powerhouse in the Premier League these past few months, they’re in the driver’s seat to conquer the Europa Conference League.

Lifting Europe’s third-tier title would hardly be any consolation should the Pensioners miss out on a top-four league finish for the third season in a row.