Firstly, Norwich City and Chris Hughton, who find themselves in the relegation zone as it stands. Two wins from ten games, both by a goal to nil, isn't the response anybody connected with the club wanted after the outlay of money in the summer on players like Ricky van Wolfswinkel and Gary Hooper to try and spearhead the side to a top half finish. This big spending is what has put Hughton under pressure, and in my opinion, rightly so. I know that Hooper isn't at 100% fitness and van Wolfswinkel is currently injured, but that shouldn't be any excuse. Norwich won 3-2 at the Etihad last season, and there were only five changes to the side that lost 7-0 today - Turner, Bassong, Olsson, Fer and Hooper in for Bennett, Snodgrass, Garrido, Hoolahan and the departed Grant Holt. So what has changed? A lack of confidence? Are there differences? For me, it's bemusing, and the fact that it's unclear what it is causing this downturn in form is the reason why Hughton has to go. It's time for change at Norwich, signalled with the intake of new players, and now a change of manager is due. What Chris Hughton will do is keep looking at the positives - they are the only side that has beaten Southampton in the league this season - but that cannot last for long.
Martin Jol at Fulham for me is under even more pressure. 3 wins from 10 games - all against teams below them in the table - isn't good enough for a team like Fulham, especially with the squad they've got. It's indisputable that they've got some top quality players, Dimitar Berbatov, Maarten Stekelenburg, Scott Parker to name a few; it's not like they've bought poorly in the summer, because they haven't. Whether it's a question of the players not gelling together yet is a talking point, but in some cases it could be due to the work rate of some of their players, most notably Berbatov and Adel Taarabt, who can both do incredible things when they've got the ball, but without it, their commitment is not good enough for a Premier League side. Their defence has also been questioned by some people in the media, suggesting that they simply haven't been good enough so far this season. It's not like they lack a leader, because they have that in Brede Hangeland, and plenty of Premier League experience with the presence of Phillipe Senderos and Keiran Richardson in the back four, as well as Sascha Riether, who impressed so many last season. Add to that Fernando Amorebieta, a rock at the heart of the Athletic Bilbao defence for 8 years prior to his summer move, the back line is solid. The only thing it can be is a lack of resilience, a lack of strength being shown, and it's being reflected on the rest of the team. This is the first real test of Shahid Khan's tenure as Fulham's owner - does he stick with Jol, or twist and adopt a fresh approach? Personally, I think it has to be the latter of those.
But who can replace Hughton and Jol? Well, there is Tony Pulis, or, as always, Alan Curbishley. Maybe they pluck a Pochettino from somewhere, or someone pulling up trees in a lower league - maybe Sean Dyche or Eddie Howe? Who knows, only time will tell.
Martin Jol at Fulham for me is under even more pressure. 3 wins from 10 games - all against teams below them in the table - isn't good enough for a team like Fulham, especially with the squad they've got. It's indisputable that they've got some top quality players, Dimitar Berbatov, Maarten Stekelenburg, Scott Parker to name a few; it's not like they've bought poorly in the summer, because they haven't. Whether it's a question of the players not gelling together yet is a talking point, but in some cases it could be due to the work rate of some of their players, most notably Berbatov and Adel Taarabt, who can both do incredible things when they've got the ball, but without it, their commitment is not good enough for a Premier League side. Their defence has also been questioned by some people in the media, suggesting that they simply haven't been good enough so far this season. It's not like they lack a leader, because they have that in Brede Hangeland, and plenty of Premier League experience with the presence of Phillipe Senderos and Keiran Richardson in the back four, as well as Sascha Riether, who impressed so many last season. Add to that Fernando Amorebieta, a rock at the heart of the Athletic Bilbao defence for 8 years prior to his summer move, the back line is solid. The only thing it can be is a lack of resilience, a lack of strength being shown, and it's being reflected on the rest of the team. This is the first real test of Shahid Khan's tenure as Fulham's owner - does he stick with Jol, or twist and adopt a fresh approach? Personally, I think it has to be the latter of those.
But who can replace Hughton and Jol? Well, there is Tony Pulis, or, as always, Alan Curbishley. Maybe they pluck a Pochettino from somewhere, or someone pulling up trees in a lower league - maybe Sean Dyche or Eddie Howe? Who knows, only time will tell.
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