Next Everton manager odds: 5 contenders with Wayne Rooney favourite after Rafa Benitez sacked

Rafa Benitez has been sacked by Everton following a run of just one win in their last 13 Premier League matches.

The Spaniard was only appointed in June but faced a tricky start due to his club legend status at fierce rivals Liverpool.

Benitez’s last game was a 2-1 defeat at Norwich who earned just their third win of the season.

Everton have yet to announce the 61-year-old’s successor but former player and lifelong fan Wayne Rooney leads the bookies’ odds to take over. Here are the five men favourite to take the Toffees’ top job:

Wayne Rooney (6/5)

Derby County boss Wayne Rooney has done a superb job at Pride Park but could be tempted to move back to his boyhood club. (Photo: PA)

According to Betfair, Rooney’s odds have gone down from 7/2 to 6/5.

The 36-year-old came through Everton’s youth academy before making his breakthrough into the first team in 2002.

He left in 2004 to join Manchester United but returned in 2017 for a season.

Rooney is currently the manager of Derby County and is trying to pull off the biggest of all escape jobs as the Rams fight back from a 21-point deduction.

Duncan Ferguson (7/2)

Duncan Ferguson and Rafa Benitez before the latter was sacked for poor results (Photo: Reuters)

If Rooney decides to stay with Derby then another club legend being touted is Duncan Ferguson at 7/2.

The former striker is assistant boss at Everton and had a brief spell as interim manager in 2019.

Roberto Martinez (4/1)

Martinez reached the semi final of both the League and FA Cup during his final season with Everton. (Photo: Getty)

Roberto Martinez is valued at 4/1 having last managed Everton in 2016.

Under the Spaniard’s leadership, Everton secured a fifth-placed finish in the 2013/14 season but he was sacked the following campaign after a run of poor results left the club in 12th.

Since his Everton sacking, Martinez has managed the Belgium national team where he earned third place in the 2018 World Cup, the country’s best ever finish at the tournament.

In Euro 2020, Belgium were eliminated by eventual champions Italy in the quarter-finals.

Frank Lampard (13/2)

Frank Lampard has been out of work since losing his job at Chelsea in January 2021. (Photo: PA)

Frank Lampard has been out of work since his Chelsea sacking last year but has been linked with a number of clubs as he looks to make his return into management.

Betfair values him at 13/2 but it remains to be seen whether he would be interested in taking on the Everton job.

Paulo Fonseca (10/1)

An outside bet for the job is Portuguese manager Paulo Fonseca.

The 48-year-old has managed a long list of clubs and was most recently in charge of Roma but he has no Premier League experience.

Fonseca’s greatest success of his career so far came during his time in charge of Shakhtar Donetsk where he won the league and cup double in three consecutive seasons.

Betfair values him at 10/1 to take the Everton job.

from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3Kgp6pA