New West Ham, Scott Parker update should make Ipswich Town and Coventry City rest easy | OneFootball

Speculation linking Burnley manager Scott Parker with the West Ham job should be reassuring for Ipswich Town and Coventry City.

As the Premier League managerial merry-go-round swings into action, supporters of Ipswich Town and Coventry City perhaps have more reason to be nervous than most.

There has already been one managerial casualty in the Premier League this season, with Nuno Espirito Santo being replaced by Ange Postecoglou at Nottingham Forest after a public fallout with owner Evangelos Marinakis.

However, while Nuno's sacking at the City Ground was not necessary based on results, there are a number of top flight managers who will be feeling the pressure after poor starts to the season, with West Ham United's Graham Potter currently looking the most likely to be the next to lose his job.

While Potter remains in place at the London Stadium for now, speculation about his future has been gathering pace for some time, and earlier this month, it was claimed that Coventry manager Frank Lampard was one of the names under consideration by the Hammers hierarchy as they weighed up whether to make a managerial change.

Lampard is not the only Championship manager to have been linked with West Ham, and after Ipswich's Kieran McKenna was spotted in the club's boardroom during their 3-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur, rumours circulated that he could also be a potential target.

However, with a fresh name emerging in the running to replace Potter this week, Ipswich and Coventry supporters may feel a little less concerned about the prospect of their respective managers being poached by the Hammers.

West Ham United target Burnley manager Scott Parker as Graham Potter pressure builds

West Ham currently sit 19th in the Premier League table having won one and lost four of their opening five league games this season, while they were also knocked out of the EFL Cup at the second round stage by Wolverhampton Wanderers, but as things stand, it looks as though Potter will be given until the international break to turn his side's fortunes around.

However, with the Hammers facing tough trips to Everton and Arsenal in their next two games, it will be difficult for Potter to pick up the required positive results to save his job, and with an increasing number of supporters calling for him to be sacked, his departure seems like a matter of when and not if.

Lampard and McKenna have both been mentioned as possible replacements for Potter in recent weeks, but according to GiveMeSport, Burnley head coach Scott Parker has been discussed among the West Ham hierarchy, and he has been added to a shortlist that also features Nuno, Slaven Bilic and Gary O'Neil.

Parker took over at Turf Moor last summer, and despite coming in for criticism for his style of football at times, he led the Clarets to automatic promotion to the Premier League in his first season in charge as his side finished second in the table with an impressive total of 100 points.

Burnley have had to contend with a nightmare fixture list on their return to the top flight, but Parker's men have performed admirably this season, picking up four points from their opening five games, and they were incredibly unlucky to lose to both Manchester United and Liverpool, with stoppage-time penalties denying them a crucial point on both occasions.

West Ham United, Scott Parker talk will be a big relief for Ipswich Town and Coventry City

As they have two of the most talented young managers in the Championship, Ipswich and Coventry will likely have to deal with plenty of speculation about interest in McKenna and Lampard this season, but for now, it seems they do not need to worry about an approach from West Ham.

While Parker struggled in the Premier League with Fulham and Bournemouth, his Burnley side have been incredibly competitive so far this season, and the 44-year-old's time at Turf Moor suggests he has learned from some of his early managerial mistakes.

Parker's pragmatic brand of football may not be entirely welcomed by a Hammers fanbase who have long clamoured for a more attacking and attractive style of play, but he is well-regarded at the London Stadium having scored 12 goals and provided 10 assists in 129 appearances during a four-year spell at the club as a player.

With supporters feeling increasingly disconnected from the club at present, West Ham owner David Sullivan may view the appointment of a former fan favourite as the perfect way to help ease some of those tensions, and that could give Parker a big advantage over some of the other candidates in the frame.

Of course, Lampard also has a strong connection to the club, but it is fair to say he had a strained relationship with the Hammers faithful, even before his move to Chelsea in 2001, so he would certainly be a controversial appointment, and it does not appear he is currently on Sullivan's list of targets.

As for McKenna, his surprise appearance in the West Ham boardroom seems to have been responsible for fuelling speculation about a potential move to East London, rather than any concrete reports linking him with the job, so, like Coventry supporters, Ipswich fans can also breathe a little easier for now at least.