Ronald Koeman has been axed from his role as Everton manager after the Toffees were thoroughly outclassed by Arsenal at the weekend. The 5-2 defeat left Everton in the relegation zone and the writing was on the return for the Dutchman after a dismal return of just eight points from nine games. In mitigation, the club lost leading goal scorer Romelu Lukaku in a £75 million deal to Man Utd, but more than made up for it by investing £140 million in a clutch of new stars, from Gylfi Sigurdsson to Jordan Pickford. They were expected to challenge for a Champions League spot and finish seventh at a bare minimum, but instead, they find themselves in a relegation dogfight, while Pickford has been busier than he was last season at bottom club, Sunderland.
Bookmakers have started offering lines on who will take over from Koeman, and Burnley boss Sean Dyche is the early favourite, best priced at 5/2 with Sky Bet but as low as 6/4 with the likes of Paddy Power, Bet Victor and Betfair. Dyche is very much in demand, as he has also been trading as the favourite to take over at Leicester, who recently sacked Craig Shakespeare after a similarly dreadful start to the campaign. Meanwhile, high-flying Burnley, who are eighth in the table and five points ahead of Everton, will fight tooth and nail to keep hold of their charismatic coach. Punters think he will be tempted by the chance of managing a bigger club, however, and most have backed him to make the move to Goodison Park.
Next up in the betting is Everton U23 boss David Unsworth, a club legend who could provide some solid stability at this chaotic time. He is the second favourite and can be backed at 11/2 with Boyle Sports and 5/1 with 888 Sport and Unibet. Whether he has the necessary pedigree is another matter. David Moyes is 8/1 with Boyle Sports to make a sensational return to Goodison Park. He was highly effective during his long tenure at the club, but his star has since waned after poor spells at Man Utd, Real Sociedad, and Sunderland, where he suffered the ignominy of relegation next season. Carlo Ancelotti, serial Champions League winner, is a far more ambitious option at 10/1 with Betfred, while Sam Allardyce is as low as 4/1 with green listed bookmakers Unibet and Bet Victor but can be backed at 10/1 with William Hill. A longer shot is Wales boss Chris Coleman, another leading contender for the Leicester job, at 20/1 with 888 Sport and William Hill, while a huge outsider would be Ryan Giggs at 66/1 as the former Man Utd player declared an interest in the job.
Everton faces a crunch game against Leicester at the weekend and both teams are expected to be without a manager for it. This could prove a case of two headless chickens clattering into one another and there is unlikely to be a great deal of organization or discipline from either side. Everton have now conceded 18 goals in nine games, while Leicester have shipped five, so you would expect plenty of goals and the likes of Wayne Rooney and Jamie Vardy should capitalize. Both teams to score looks a great bet in this game at 7/8 with 188Sport and 4/5 with Bet365 and various other leading bookmakers.
If either team wins and goes on a run they could still be contenders for that seventh place finish, which none of the teams above them look like nailing down. Watford, Newcastle, and Burnley, three teams tipped for a relegation scrap before the season started, are the three highest placed teams apart from the Big Six, and they can all be caught. Southampton and Watford are the joint 4/1 favourites with Ladbrokes without the Big Six, but then come Everton at 5/1 with Sky Bet and Leicester at 8/1 with Ladbrokes, both interesting options if they can turn their seasons around. A lot will depend on which manager each team secures, and it could be an interesting couple of weeks for the likes of Dyche and Coleman.
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