Premier League managers are in a precarious situation, and they should consider themselves lucky if they manage to avoid getting the sack, according to West Ham boss David Moyes. His words were proven true when Graham Potter became the 13th top-flight managerial casualty of the season. Moyes himself has been under tremendous pressure due to a lacklustre domestic campaign at London Stadium, but he has been backed by owner David Sullivan. A defeat against Southampton would have sent West Ham to the bottom of the table and increased the scrutiny on Moyes.
Moyes commented that “We are in a whirlpool” and that “It is happening more now”. With so much money at stake for Premier League clubs, it is no surprise that managers are being replaced at a rapid rate. Moyes believes that it is rare for a manager to only experience good times and win all the time. Fortunately for West Ham, Nayef Aguerd’s first-half header was enough to secure three points, which moved them up from 19th to 14th.
Moyes expressed his disappointment for Brendan Rodgers, who was recently sacked by Leicester City. He praised Rodgers as a “super manager” and a “really good coach”, and believes he won’t be out of work for long due to his impressive record. Moyes attributes his own survival at West Ham to his strong relationship with Sullivan and the success of the previous two seasons, where they finished sixth and seventh in consecutive campaigns.
West Ham still have a Europa Conference League quarter-final against Belgian side Genk to look forward to, and they will be hoping to preserve their top-flight status. For Southampton, survival is their only goal. They know that it would take a mathematical improbability for them to get out of the bottom three next weekend, even if they beat Manchester City. However, with most of the clubs above them playing twice before Southampton take on Pep Guardiola’s men, the situation could be a whole lot worse. Manager Ruben Selles is focusing on the things he can control, rather than worrying about relegation or the table.