Jose Mourinho’s sacking is likely to be the highest profile sacking in the EPL this season. His departure has revived the atmosphere among the squad players and Old Trafford. Manchester United are thriving despite their recent defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League and look set to finish inside the top four.
A few other clubs have also changed their manager, namely Fulham, Southampton and Huddersfield. Focusing on the higher profile clubs, there is constant pressure on the managers to bring trophies and be able to beat their arch-rivals in the league.
Here is a look at the three managers who are now facing some trouble in getting the best out of their players and could be shown the door.
#3 Unai Emery
Judging from all the social media activity and Unai Emery’s words in press conferences, it is obvious that his relationship with Mesut Ozil has turned sour. It might have even reached a point where it’s beyond any repair. Only one of them would be able to stay at the club and Ozil is certainly not giving up any hopes of continuing his career with Arsenal.
Emery used to manage Paris Saint-Germain, a club which is rarely challenged in Ligue 1. As much as there was pressure to succeed, it was relatively easy to bring domestic trophies to the club. Over at the Emirates, life has been pretty tough for the manager given the limited amount of funds that he can use and the huge pressure to be as successful as Arsene Wenger.
Wenger left a legacy behind and huge boots to fill in, and chants of Emery Out have started sooner than expected. Certainly, fans would know that it is almost impossible to win the Premier League trophy in your first season at the club. Even Pep Guardiola, one of the best managers in the world, did not manage to do that.
Disregarding the exits from the FA Cup and Carabao Cup at the hands of Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur respectively, the Gunners were embarrassed in their trip to Belarus. The Europa League specialist, Emery, brought a stronger than expected squad to face Bate Borisov who have only beaten English sides once in their history, but they managed to get the better of the Gunners on the night much to the fury of the Arsenal fans.
Emery’s stubbornness to change is costing him his reputation at North London. Wenger managed Arsenal for 22 long years, but for Emery, his time with Arsenal could be short-lived.
#2 Marco Silva
After making a pretty wonderful start to his career as the new Everton manager, Marco Silva is now struggling to get his players to perform. In the last three matches, Everton have lost to Wolverhampton Wanderers, Watford and Manchester City. The most embarrassing defeat was probably the FA Cup tie where the Toffees lost to Championship club, Millwall.
According to the fans, Everton now look like a side which cannot defend nor score. Things just seem to be going from bad to worse for the Portuguese manager. When he was in-charged of Watford, the team also made a relatively good start, but their performances gradually dipped and history is now repeating itself in Silva’s time with Everton.
His new additions such as Lucas Digne and Richarlison have not yet reached the standards demanded of them. At the same time, players who have already been with the club are also not performing up to the mark. Everton next face a revived Cardiff City at the end of the month and following that, they will face Liverpool in the Merseyside Derby.
In the fixture held at Anfield, the Toffees were close to grabbing a point until Jordan Pickford’s last-minute horrifying mistake caused the side to lose. If Everton are to suffer a thrashing at the hands of their fierce rivals, Silva’s time at Goodison Park could really be up.
1 Maurizio Sarri
Sarri is probably the manager most likely to receive the sack. Following subpar and inconsistent performances, the Blues now have a hard time even getting wins under their belt.
Chelsea have endured goalscoring issues this season with Alvaro Morata and Olivier Giroud failing to hit the back of the net on a regular basis. Sarri tried to rely on Eden Hazard to bring in goals for the team but even after working tirelessly, the midfielder has lacked the desired output.
In the winter transfer window, Sarri brought in Higuain on loan from Juventus. The Argentine had previously worked with the Italian and he had an immediate impact in Chelsea’s superb game against Huddersfield. However, all the positivity was erased as Chelsea crumbled to a 6-0 defeat to Manchester City.
Over the years, the Chelsea board has become well-known for being ruthless in the sacking of managers. Sarri could be the next victim of this trend. The London club now find themselves sitting in sixth in the Premier League table and could miss out on a Champions League spot yet again.
Getting into the finals of the Europa League could be Sarri’s sole saviour this season, especially if he fails to overcome United in the upcoming FA Cup tie.
