Five possible replacements for Sam Allardyce at West Ham

West Ham United boss Sam Allardyce has become a victim of his own success, again, as his side’s early season form has been overshadowed by their recent slump of recording just one win in their last nine Premier League games.

Despite that, the Hammers remain in ninth place, and are heavily odds-on at 1/5 to finish in the top 10, which was the club owners David Gold and David Sullivan’s target this term. But still fans have called for Allardyce’s head and a whole host of names have been linked with the job as a result.

The former Bolton Wanderers and Newcastle United boss said: “I don’t know I am going to be here next season. But when you’re contracted to a club, you do the job. One of those roles is to plan for next season.”

So, Coral writers have come up with a list of five possible replacements for Allardyce, if he does leave West Ham, who are 5/4 favourites to beat Stoke City at Upton Park.

Rafa Benitez
The Spaniard is out of contract with current club Napoli (5/1 to win the Europa League) at the end of the season, and has rejected a new deal. Benitez has always said he’d like to return to management in England, after his success with Liverpool and Europa League triumph as interim Chelsea manager.

Marcelo Bielsa
Eccentric coach Bielsa threatened to spoil PSG’s party earlier in the season in the French top-flight with Marseille (33/1 to win Ligue 1), as they led the league for much of the campaign. The ex-Argentina boss has been much lauded throughout his career for his meticulous, but unorthodox, attacking tactics, and is another whose contract is up in the summer.

Slaven Bilic
Former Croatia coach Bilic is an old Hammers player, with cult hero status at the club, despite only paying for them for a season. The 46-year-old, current Besiktas boss, has long been linked with West Ham, and could finally land the job at the end of the season.

David Moyes
Moyes has made a surprisingly successful start to life in Spain with Real Sociedad, as he has led them to the top 10 so far. The Scot is an outside shout to take over at Upton Park, but will likely return to the Premier League one day.

Gus Poyet
Recently sacked from Sunderland, Poyet will be desperate to get back into management. The Uruguayan played for other London sides Chelsea and Tottenham, and could be interested in a move to West Ham, where his son Diego currently plies his trade.