The EFL Sack Race - Who's The Next Manager To Be Sacked?

The EFL Sack Race - Who's The Next Manager To Be Sacked?

Nowadays in football managers get less and less time to prove themselves at a club before they are relieved of their duties. This stems from the overall lack of loyalty within the game in the current day. As a third of the current English footballing season has passed, it is no surprise that there have been quite a few managerial changes across the whole of the EFL.

So, the question is who is likely to be the next manager to be placed back in the shop window, as there are a number of teams that are not quite meeting their pre-season expectations?

Tom Cleverley

Tom Cleverley is under a lot of pressure to keep his job as Plymouth Argyle boss as they find themselves sitting 23rd in League One and with form not showing signs of improvement much at all. This is definitely not where they would have expected to find themselves before the season began, as they were playing Championship football last season so they should be one of the stronger sides in the division.

It seems that Argyle fans are unhappy with other parts of the club rather than just Cleverley; however, keeping him in the position much longer is going to make the fear of League Two football next season more of a reality.

Ryan Mason

There is no doubt that Ryan Mason’s position as West Brom head coach is under threat, with the Baggies finding themselves in 17th position in the Championship with only one win in their last six outings. For a team that has been consistently finishing in and around the playoffs since relegation from the Premier League in 2021, this is definitely not the direction they were looking to go in August.

I’m fed up of hearing that Ryan Mason is still learning his trade as manager.
You don’t tactically sub your best player off at half time after he’s got 2 assists. It’s complete lunacy to say the least.
He’s completely out of his depth and even the opponents fans can see it. #wba

— Lewis Botfield 𓅪 (@lewis_botfield) November 23, 2025

In a Championship season where, other than Coventry, there are no standout sides at this minute, West Brom could have seen this as an opportunity to stake a claim for promotion. It seems that the general consensus from fans is that Mason plays a boring style of football which doesn’t offer much creative threat going forward, which, as fans, is not something that you want to pay money to go and watch.

Darren Moore

Port Vale currently find themselves at the bottom of the league in League One this season and just lost a huge six-pointer at home to Plymouth on Saturday afternoon - it is no surprise that Darren Moore might be in his final days in charge of the Vale.

Winless in their last seven league games and lacking any firepower in front of goal, only scoring 11 goals in 17 games so far this campaign, it doesn’t seem like a job that Moore is likely to be able to turn around anytime soon. The fans are disappointed that the team are performing this way after Moore was backed in the transfer window, bringing in twelve players to add to the squad.

Darrell Clarke

Another head coach who could consider himself rather fortunate to still be in a job this season is Bristol Rovers boss Darrell Clarke. Before the 2025/26 season kicked off, Bristol Rovers were odds-on to finish in playoff positions at the very least after being relegated from League One last season.

Darrell Clarke speaks to the media after our defeat to Cheltenham Town... pic.twitter.com/alvOJvsLpg

— Bristol Rovers (@Official_BRFC) November 22, 2025

So, to find themselves in 20th position and only two points above the relegation zone after 17 games is far from the expectations of many. With seven losses on the bounce in the league, Darrell Clarke’s short spell of 22 games in charge of the Pirates could be coming to an end, as time is running out if they want to make any sort of attempt at promotion straight back to League One.

Gary Rowett

Gary Rowett has done a fantastic job since taking charge of Oxford United last December by keeping the U’s in the Championship last season against the odds. However, the season so far hasn’t exactly gone to plan, as they find themselves just one point above the relegation zone.

Last season, their home form was vital to ensuring their safety in the division, with 11 of their 13 wins coming at the Kassam. Conversely, they have only managed one win in eight home league matches so far this season. It is imperative that they improve that home form as soon as possible if they want to remain in the Championship for the third consecutive season and it is looking doubtful as to whether Gary Rowett is able to get them doing that.

The pressure on managers in this day is ever-growing, as their ideas need to come to fruition almost immediately unless they want to find themselves back on the managerial merry-go-round. So these five managers will definitely not be the only managers worrying about their positions at their clubs going into a busy Christmas period but let’s see which ones have the ability to turn their fortunes around.