12 coaches in English Premier League sacked during ongoing season

Coaches for the English Premier League’s football clubs have little job security. This season alone has seen the replacement of as many as 12 coaches, the largest ever in the league’s history.

Leicester City FC and Chelsea FC announced the replacement of their coaches on their websites on Monday. Leicester City coach Brendan Rodgers had to tender resignation when his team lost 1-2 to Crystal Palace FC last Saturday to fall in overall rankings to 17th. Chelsea coach Graham Potter was also sacked the next day after his team lost 0-2 to Aston Villa FC on Sunday. A total of 12 coaches have been forced out in the middle of this season.

After Bournemouth FC coach Scott Matthew Parker was fired first in August last year, Chelsea coach Thomas Tuchel, Aston Villa coach Steven Gerrard, Everton coach Frank Lampard, Cristal Palace coach Patrick Donale Vieira have been sacked in succession. Coach Antonio Conte of Totten Hotspur FC where Son Heung-min is affiliated also resigned and returned to his motherland of Italy last month. As every team in the EPL has 9 – 11 matches yet to play during the rest of the season, more coaches could be fired before the end of this season.

When coach Gerrard was sacked last year, coach Rodgers who was leading Leicester City from the 2019-2020 season, said, “EPL coaches are facing the risk of losing their job every day. When coaching a team, I feel like I come to lose mental stability and patience completely.” Other than Liverpool coach Jurgen Norbert Klopp and Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola, coaches in the league only serve their post for about two years on average. Klopp, the longest-running incumbent coach in the league, has been leading Liverpool since 2015. Guardiola is guiding Manchester City for seven consecutive seasons.

“Assuming the coach for an EPL team is a challenge in itself, but it is a bigger challenge to stay on the job,” NBC Sports said. “Coaches who fail to meet their teams’ expectations will be inevitably forced out.”


hun@donga.com