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David Moyes

Regardless of the good-will he had built up in abundance during his time as Everton boss, the Scot’s time as Manchester United boss, not to mention his ill-fated stint in Spain, have left serious questions about the ability of the now Sunderland manager.

Taking charge after Alex Ferguson would have been a difficult task for whomever was appointed, but David Moyes failed the test and had his 6-year contract terminated after less than one season.

In an interesting move, his next position was as Head Coach of La Liga side Real Sociedad.

Despite a 1-0 win over Barcelona, arguably the highlight of his career since departing Everton, he was sacked in November 2015, almost exactly a year after he was appointed, following a poor start to the season.

Now, he finds himself at struggling Sunderland.

Appointed after Allardyce’s departure for England, Moyes has a very difficult task to try to cement this club, who have been flirting with relegation for the past few seasons.

Light up front and without an experienced goalkeeper, it looks like this could be the season that the black cats finally succumb to the drop.

 

Tony Pulis

The man that nobody wants, but quite a few clubs need.

That may seem like too disparaging for a manager who has a proven record of keeping teams in the Premier League, but it is true.

Regardless of how many times he has dragged teams from the brink of relegation and cemented them in the assurances of mid-table, it appears he is always hated by those who support his sides’.

Largely, this is due to the soul-sapping football that the Welshman forces his teams to play.

Boring, drab, dire- think of all the synonyms in the world and they have probably been used to describe Pulis’ style of play.

But the promise of Pulis has always been that, no matter how boring his teams play, they will always be safe from relegation.

This West Brom side could be the exception that breaks that streak.

Although the Baggies do have some talented players, with Rondon and Chadli they have a potentially lethal attacking duo, they look to be playing with no imagination and no confidence.

Favourite for the sack race, it’s hard to see Pulis remaining at the helm till the end of the season

 

Alan Pardew

Nothing summarises the arrogance of Alan Pardew more perfectly than his early celebratory dance on the touchline during last seasons FA Cup final.

Having gone 1-0 against Manchester United, Pardew thought it the perfect time to hog a bit of the limelight for himself, and whip out a bizarre dad dance, rather than calming his players or shouting some tactical instruction.

United went on to win, and now Pardew somehow looks even sillier.

The same can be said for his Crystal Palace team, who were in absolute free fall for the second half of last season, the low point of which amassed a 14 game winless run.

This follows a pattern in Pardew’s recent managerial career of second/ third season slumps.

It appears as though once the initial buoyance and inertia the players receive through his ‘laddy’ approachable style has worn off, the true naiveté of his tactics are exposed.

The loss of star-man Yannick Bolasie will be slightly off-set by the goals Christian Benteke will bring, but it means the Eagles are now going to be extremely reliant on Townsend and Zaha for creativity; a statement which does not bode well for Palace’s season, and Pardew’s future.
Dishonourable Mentions

Francesco Guidolin – I felt Gary Monk was harshly replaced at the helm of the Swans and, despite their new investors, I think the Welsh side will be hamstrung by a manager who doesn’t appear to have fully adapted to the English game.

 

Written by Adam Pritchard

Follow Adam on Twitter @DukeArsenal

Check out his fantastic football blog, Starting At Ten

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