The Chop

JJ here,

While I’m looking forward to the league coming back in August there are a few teams that I hope to see very little of. I think you can probably guess them as they’re most likely the ones you’re dreading as well.

There’s the all new long ball worshipping Fulham who will be dire to watch under Sanchez.
Then there’s Derby who have a man in charge so foolish that he believes £3.5 million for Robert Earnshaw represents good business.
What about Wigan where Chris Hutchings will now field a side with both Emile Heskey and Titus Bramble in it.
And of course, Boro, as always, will be terrible.

Everton may also be as horrendously dull as usual but their new young strikeforce of Vaughn and Anichebe look like they could provide a spark where once there was only the lumbering James ‘Isn’t that your fourth cheese sandwich’ Beattie.

Of those mentioned above I think Bill Davies, Lawrie Sanchez and Hutchings will all be under threat of being sacked from the first moment of the new season. Hutchings has a track record of failure at Bradford and his signings leave a lot to be desired in a team that played very poorly last year.

Sanchez will turn Fulham from a team that everyone rooted for into hoof merchants that will alienate fans in their droves. Mohammed Al Fayed has all of a sudden become more visible around the club again and I think this may lead to some tension should results go against them.

Davies though has made the most questionable decision of all by allowing the appointment of former Scotland manager – and one of the most boring pundits on the planet – Craig Brown as ‘football consultant’ for Derby. For a man who is managing in the Premiership for the first time this wreaks of someone who is trying to make himself appear to have as professional a set-up as possible. Instead I’m predicting he’ll lose several of his first ten matches (which include games against Spurs, Liverpool, Arsenal and Sven City) and get the sack.

The board will then look around the table and see a former international coach who can not only take the job but do so on the same pay as they have him on now.

Davies has, I think anyway, made a major error. He may have a contract until 2010 but faced with a losing team the Derby chairman Peter Gadsby would have to weigh up a settlement with Davies or losing £30-50 million by dropping out of the league. Then again, maybe he’ll do brilliantly, though I doubt it with their squad.

So there you have it folks, my choice for first manager to be sacked is Billy Davies, followed by Sanchez and then Hutchings (only because his chairman is so f**king pig headed he’ll stick it out for a while longer). The Derby manager is currently available for 8-1 on PaddyPower.com, Hutchings at 4-1 and Sanchez at 10-1. I’m off to the bookies to put my money where my blog is… so who’s your pick?