5 managers whose jobs could be under threat after the international break | Premier League 2020-21

It’s no secret that thus far, the 2020-21 Premier League season has been pretty unusual. We’ve seen a ridiculous amount of goals, VAR awarding frankly bizarre penalties, and the reigning Premier League champions getting hammered 7-2 by a team who avoided relegation on the final day of 2019-20.

Sides like Southampton, Everton, and Aston Villa have been pushing towards the top of the table, while the likes of Manchester United and even Manchester City have struggled at times. And to add to all of this, we’re now in November, and not a single Premier League manager has been sacked.

Admittedly, the majority of sides have only played eight games due to the season’s delayed start. But 2019-20 saw Watford fire Javi Gracia after just four games. And after that, another six bosses followed him in being sacked by their clubs.

So could the current international break be a harbinger of doom for at least one current Premier League boss? As the 2020-21 campaign reaches towards the crucial Christmas period, it could be time for a change at more than one club.

Here are five Premier League bosses who could leave their clubs after the international break.

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#1 Ole Gunnar Solskjaer

Solskjaer's United have yet to win a Premier League match at Old Trafford this season.

The most obvious candidate to be forced out of his club right now would have to be Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. The Norwegian claimed his job wasn’t at threat going into last weekend’s game against Everton – a game the Red Devils ended up winning. But it’s still hard to see him surviving unless his side improve dramatically soon.

And can we really expect that to happen? Outside of his initial period as caretaker boss in 2018-19, Solskjaer’s United have always been wildly inconsistent – lurching from being brilliant to woeful often across a small handful of games.

However, this season they’ve definitely edged more towards the latter. United currently sit in 14th in the Premier League table, although they do have a game in hand on most of their rivals. But they’ve only won three Premier League matches so far and have failed to pick up a win at Old Trafford in three attempts.

Meanwhile, in European competition, the Red Devils impressed in wins over Paris St. Germain and RB Leipzig. But they then slumped to a shameful defeat to Turkish minnows Istanbul Basaksehir.

Some United fans persist with the theory that Solskjaer hasn’t been backed in the transfer market. But is that really true? He spent the best part of £200m on new stars before the 2019-20 Premier League season. And this summer saw him sign Donny van de Beek, Edinson Cavani, and Alex Telles, but thus far, none of the trio have started a Premier League game.

Essentially, it’s looking more and more like Solskjaer is simply a man out of his depth. And with highly rated bosses like Mauricio Pochettino and Max Allegri still available, it wouldn’t be a surprise if United were to pull the trigger and fire the Norwegian in the next few weeks.

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#2 Sean Dyche

Could Sean Dyche really depart Burnley this season?

One of the biggest surprises of the Premier League campaign thus far has been the struggles of Burnley. The Clarets are one of only three Premier League sides yet to pick up a win, and they currently sit just one place above the bottom spot in the table. Considering they finished 10th last season, their poor form has been alarming.

Boss Sean Dyche has been at Turf Moor now since October 2012, and not only did he guide them into the Premier League, but he’s also helped them consolidate there too. He even led them to an impressive seventh-place finish in 2017-18. So would Burnley really consider sacking him?

In all honesty, it’s doubtful. However, there does seem to be a lot of friction at Turf Moor. And with that in mind, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Dyche simply walk away from the job of his own accord.

Last summer, for instance, saw Dyche openly complaining to the media about Burnley’s lack of effort when it came to securing contract extensions for a handful of senior players. Since then, Premier League veterans Jeff Hendrick, Joe Hart, and Aaron Lennon have all departed Burnley on free transfers.

With the club only making one signing in the summer – Dale Stephens – and Dyche being forced to pick from an injury-depleted squad for more than one Premier League game, is it any wonder that Burnley’s form has plummeted?

And following the international break, the Clarets’ fixture list doesn’t let up, either. They face off with high-flying Crystal Palace and giants Manchester City in their next two Premier League games. And if results don’t go Burnley’s way in those two, it could be Dyche’s cue to step away.

#3 Chris Wilder

Chris Wilder's Sheffield United may be suffering from the dreaded second season syndrome.

The success of Sheffield United was one of the biggest stories of the 2019-20 Premier League season. Newly promoted from the EFL Championship, the Blades were expected to struggle in the top flight. But instead, they took the Premier League by storm. When action was halted in March, Chris Wilder’s side even stood an outside chance of securing Champions League football.

That didn’t happen in the end, but a ninth-place finish was still impressive. However, since the commencement of the 2020-21 campaign, the Blades have failed to build on that success. Instead, they look to be suffering from the dreaded 'second-season syndrome.'

Right now, Sheffield United are the Premier League’s bottom side, having lost seven of their first eight games. The only point they’ve secured came against fellow strugglers Fulham, and their goal difference has been diabolical too. They’ve scored just four goals while conceding 14.

So what’s gone so wrong? Wilder hasn’t spent millions in the transfer window. However, he was still able to bring in a number of players, including Aaron Ramsdale, Oliver Burke, and Rhian Brewster – breaking the club’s transfer record for the latter.

However, none of the trio have had the desired impact in the Premier League. And more worryingly, it appears that the likes of Oliver Norwood, John Lundstram, and Chris Basham may have been performing above their capabilities in the 2019-20 Premier League campaign.

Sheffield United aren’t likely to fire Wilder – they only handed him a new deal in the summer of 2019, and he’s built up tons of positive credit at Bramall Lane. However, if things continue to go badly, he could well decide to abandon ship himself – or the two parties could agree to end things by mutual consent.

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#4 Slaven Bilic

Slaven Bilic has denied that his job is under threat at West Brom, but is that really the case?

To paraphrase a Coldplay song, nobody really expected life in the Premier League to be that easy for West Brom in 2020-21. But nobody expected it to be quite this hard, either. The Baggies are currently sitting in 18th position in the Premier League table, and worryingly, they’re still looking for their first win after eight games.

Following their most recent loss at the weekend to Tottenham Hotspur, boss Slaven Bilic rubbished the idea that he’s under pressure. The Croatian stated that “it is a nonsense to raise that question about my future,” – but it’s hard not to imagine that he could be looking over his shoulder by this point.

West Brom appear to have a number of problems when it comes to adjusting to life in the Premier League. Thus far, their defense has looked woefully inadequate at the top level, as they’ve conceded 17 goals – the most in the Premier League by a clear margin.

But they’ve also struggled to score goals, with only Burnley and Sheffield United managing less than their total of six.

The match against Tottenham did offer some glimmers of hope – the Baggies looked more robust at the back than they’d done in any other Premier League game thus far. However, in turn, they were devoid of creativity, with star attacker Grady Diangana bizarrely left on the bench.

If Bilic can manage to marry up that defensive solidity with some more attacking threat, then he could turn things around yet. However, if he can’t stymie the rot quickly after the current international break – and he’s got a tricky game at Manchester United to deal with next – then it could cost him his job.

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#5 Graham Potter

Could Graham Potter soon find himself in trouble at Brighton?

After narrowly surviving relegation in the 2018-19 Premier League season, Brighton decided that it was time for a change that summer. They fired long-serving boss Chris Hughton and replaced him with former Swansea boss Graham Potter, a manager renowned for his progressive and attractive brand of football.

The move paid off for the Seagulls – just – in 2019-20. They finished 15th in the Premier League and defeated sides like Tottenham, Arsenal, and Everton along the way. However, their start to the 2020-21 Premier League campaign hasn’t been quite as smooth-running.

Brighton currently sit in 16th place, but they’ve won just one of their opening eight fixtures. That’s despite putting together some pretty impressive statistics. They sit in the upper echelon of the Premier League when it comes to possession per game, shots per game, pass success rate, and fewest shots conceded.

However, football is a results business, and simply put, Potter’s side have not been achieving the results thus far into 2020-21. It’s one thing for a side to be able to play attractive football, but at the Premier League level, you’ve got to win too. And Brighton haven’t been doing that.

Given that they have some horrible upcoming fixtures – Aston Villa, Liverpool, Southampton, and Leicester City are their next opponents – it wouldn’t be a shock to see them in deep trouble by Christmas. And if that’s the case, then Potter’s job could definitely be under threat.