Carlo Ancelotti, Eddie Howe, Thomas Tuchel… six possible Everton replacements for under-fire manager Ronald Koeman
Dutch boss under pressure at Goodison Park after 1-0 defeat to Burnley at home saw the Toffees slip to 16th in the league
RONALD KOEMAN'S future at Everton has come into question after their poor start to the season.
Sunday’s 1-0 defeat to Burnley was their fourth loss in five Premier League matches, leaving the Toffees sitting in 16th with just seven points from as many games.
Their Europa League campaign is also going badly, with a loss and a draw in their two group games so far.
And after spending £142million this summer on Gylfi Sigurdsson, Michael Keane, Jordan Pickford and Davy Klaassen, that return simply isn’t good enough and the Dutchman is under real pressure.
But who could Everton replace former Southampton boss Koeman with?
Our friends at Football Whispers look at six possible alternatives.
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Carlo Ancelotti
Recently sacked by Bayern Munich, former Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti would like his next move to be a return to the Premier League according to reports.
His previous record in England is impressive, winning 61% of his games with the Blues, as well as leading them to a Premier League and FA Cup double in his first season at Stamford Bridge.
In fact, at his last four clubs – Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich – Ancelotti has a win record of above 60%.
No Everton manager (not including caretaker bosses) has a record anywhere near that. Even David Moyes, who did so well in his 11 years at Goodison Park, managed only 425, while Koeman is currently at 43%.
And there would be a good story in Ancelotti returning to English football at the ground he was so famously sacked at after a last-day-of-the-season defeat to Everton while Chelsea boss.
David Unsworth
After spending big this summer, Everton may want to keep the cost of a successor down.
While they wouldn’t have to spend big to bring Ancelotti in, his wages would undoubtedly be a lot larger than those asked for by former Blues defender David Unsworth.
The 43-year-old is currently managing their Under-23s with great success, leading them to the Premier League 2 title last season.
He also won his one game in charge as caretaker manager after Roberto Martinez’s sacking in 2016.
Speaking then, he admitted he’d love the job on a permanent basis, saying: “Who wouldn't want this job?
“I have massive aspirations to be a manager and this is the only place I want to manage.
"Whether it comes now, whether it comes down the line, I am just proud to have this position.”
Since then, his stock has only grown and he could be a shrewd appointment.
Eddie Howe
Everton aren’t afraid of poaching a manager who’s currently at another club.
Their previous three appointments have come from another English side, with Moyes arriving from Preston North End, Martinez from Wigan Athletic and Koeman from Southampton.
If they are looking at bright managers in England, Eddie Howe will be up there.
Bournemouth are sitting in 19th this season but Howe has done a great job on the South Coast, overseeing three promotions, and has even been subject of England and Arsenal rumours.
There is a question mark over his recruitment since Bournemouth’s promotion to the Premier League.
But with Steve Walsh working alongside him to oversee transfers, Howe could prove himself on the coaching pitch.
David Wagner
There aren’t too many managers in England who had a better season that David Wagner last year.
In his first term at Huddersfield, the former Borussia Dortmund reserves boss guided them from the bottom half of the Championship to the Premier League via the playoffs.
And the Terriers haven’t looked out of place in the top flight either, currently sitting in 11th having only lost two of their opening seven games.
He may not be top of many bookmakers’ lists of favourites to succeed Koeman, but he surely deserves to be in contention.
Thomas Tuchel
If Everton want a big name to replace Koeman, Tuchel could be their man.
After leaving Borussia Dortmund last summer, Tuchel was linked with Southampton. But he turned them down as he wanted a club in the Champions League.
Everton can’t give him that, but they can offer him European football with the Europa League.
With the money spent this summer, there’s no doubt the Toffees have aims of becoming a top-four club too, and that would appeal to Tuchel.
But, he is also thought to be a Bayern Munich target following Ancelotti’s departure.
So Everton would have to make a really appealing offer to convince him to move to England.
Sean Dyche
Burnley boss Sean Dyche has done a great job at Turf Moor, keeping the Clarets in the Premier League last season when many expected them to struggle.
Already this season he’s taken them to the next level with wins at Chelsea and Everton, as well as draws away to Tottenham and Liverpool.
They’ve been accused of old-fashioned, long-ball football, but that is slowly changing this season too, with their average possession in 2017/18 up from 42.7% to 44% from last season.
Pass completion is also on the rise, from 67.8% to 71% and the percentage of their passes that are long are down to 23.6% from 25.3%.
Dyche still isn’t quite a backer of the attractive style of football Koeman is known for, but that isn’t happening at Everton at the moment.
After two managers, in Koeman and Martinez, whose attractive football hasn’t produced the results they wanted, perhaps Dyche deserves a chance in what is a business where the only statistic which matters is the scoreline.