It seems absurd to suggest that there are already managers under pressure, but with one sacking already made this season, you never know what might happen.
The new EFL season is only nine days old, but Ryan Lowe was the first manager to lose his job last weekend. It didn’t do his team much good; they were soundly beaten by Swansea City yesterday, 3-0.
There were a few other big scorelines across the EFL this weekend; Sheffield Wednesday were thumped 4-0 by Sunderland, but Danny Rohl will be in a good place after handing out a similar thrashing to Plymouth Argyle last weekend.
Indeed, across the EFL, there are managers who might already be feeling the pressure, and we’ve picked four in particular who need to get their season up and running quickly.
Erol Bulut
Full-time at Turf Moor.#CityAsOne | @QuinnBet pic.twitter.com/EG4bn2FiCH
— Cardiff City FC (@CardiffCityFC) August 17, 2024
Cardiff have had a tough start. Sunderland will likely be a front-runner for promotion, while Burnley will almost certainly make an immediate return to the Premier League. That said, shipping seven goals in two matches without reply leaves the Turk under a huge amount of pressure.
He sounds like he knows it as well. The Burnley defeat was abysmal; they looked ragged at the back, and he claimed he was desperate to add ‘more quality‘ to his squad. Having had two months of summer to tie some business up, Cardiff now faces two weeks of desperate and frantic searching.
There’s also the small matter of Swansea away next Sunday. If they concede heavily at the Liberty Stadium, Bulut will be a man under immense pressure.
Neil Critchley
All over at Bloomfield Road.
🍊 #UTMP pic.twitter.com/FYGB5XVi0U
— Blackpool FC (@BlackpoolFC) August 17, 2024
Blackpool were among those believed to be in with a shout of promotion this season, but two defeats in their opening two matches have left Critchley in a tough situation. Crawley deserved their opening-day victory, and yesterday, Stockport were infinitely better than the Tangerines.
The game did turn on a disallowed goal, Ashley Fletcher bagging for the home side only for it to be ruled out, but that doesn’t change what happened after. Stockport’s two late goals put a gloss on the scoreline, but a defeat to nil at home was still a big blow for Critchley.
They’re on zero points, and fellow strugglers Cambridge play host next weekend. Failure to get all three at the Abbey Stadium could make things very tough for Critchley.
Mark Kennedy
🎙️ #STFC Head Coach, Mark Kennedy on this afternoon's defeat against Walsall:
— Swindon Town Football Club (@Official_STFC) August 17, 2024
Kennedy does have a solitary point at Swindon, courtesy of their only shot on target last weekend against Chesterfield. They only had a single shot this weekend, but visitors Walsall had seven, and four of those went in, contributing to a humbling 4-0 home defeat. If you’re losing matches and creating, there’s always hope, but Kennedy’s side are not creating.
His assessment that the game was ‘even in both boxes’ has perplexed some supporters and his assertion that his side needed to be tougher ‘mentally’ won’t go down well either. Kennedy’s side are above three teams in the division, but losing 4-0 at home always heaps the pressure on.
Mike Williamson
Mike Williamson's Colchester United review 👇
— Milton Keynes Dons (@MKDonsFC) August 17, 2024
Big-spending MK Dons were another side expected to be at the top of the table, but defeats against Bradford and Colchester yesterday changed things. The defeat against Danny Cowley’s side will be tough to take—the U’s narrowly avoided the drop last season, and MK would have expected to take something from the game.
Williamson will also be aware that the club isn’t averse to an early sacking. Graham Alexander, Paul Tisdale, and Liam Manning were sacked before Christmas at MK. He might take heart from the fact that two of those managers are currently managing clubs higher up the EFL than MK Dons, although with them 23rd out of 24, it’s not that difficult to be higher than them right now.
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