Manchester United and Brighton have both been linked with Kieran McKenna (Picture: Getty Images)
What do Leicester, Ipswich and Southampton have in common? Aside from being promoted from the Championship, of course.
It’s no surprise they are the favourites to be go straight back to the second tier but what’s more concerning for their fans in the immediate future is they could also be united in having to look for a new manager before the next season.
Leicester manager Enzo Maresca is on Chelsea’s shortlist to replace Mauricio Pochettino, Manchester United are keen on Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna, who has previously been on the coaching staff at Old Trafford, while Saints chief Russell Martin could move along the south coast to replace Roberto De Zerbi at Brighton.
Could all three clubs go straight back down? That’s what happened at the end of this season when Sheffield United, Burnley and Luton all made an immediate return to the Championship but that was something of an anomaly.
It is only the second time since the Premier League came into existence in 1992 that it has happened, the other being at the end of the 1997/98 campaign when Barnsley, Bolton and Crystal Palace all failed to survive.
What’s more, all three promoted clubs have stayed up on four occasions – the most recent being in 2022/23 when Fulham, Nottingham Forest and Bournemouth escaped the axe.
The Foxes are no better than 2/1 ON to be relegated which is hardly a shock as they face the prospect of a points deduction after violating Premier League financial rules while Ipswich, who were playing in League One just two seasons ago, look a good price to go down at 10/11 with bet365, even though they finished fifth when they were promoted in 1999/2000.
Southampton beat Leeds in the Championship play-off final but could lose manager Russell Martin (Picture: Getty Images)
Southampton are probably the best value to make an immediate return as they finished bottom, cast adrift from the rest of the division, with just 25 points two years ago and they will have to spend wisely on a vast number of new recruits to finish above the bottom three.
They are 7/4 with bet365 which is the same price Betway have for Everton to be relegated although the Toffees appear to have a far stronger squad than the other candidates for the drop.
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