Next Fleetwood Manager Odds: Early names in the frame to replace Simon Grayson
Simon Grayson’s tenure at Fleetwood Town has come to an end after 10 months following a run of seven defeats in eight games, with his last stand coming in Tuesday night’s 3-1 loss to Oxford. Assistant head coach David Dunn has also left the club.
Five League One defeats in a row means 22nd-placed Fleetwood are three points adrift of safety, while they’ve only won once since mid-September.
In a statement, Fleetwood said: “The search for his replacement will begin immediately and we will issue a further update on the first team staff in due course.”
Fleetwood have a series of crunch fixtures coming up against teams in their vicinity, including AFC Wimbledon (18th), Accrington (17th), Gillingham (20th), Morecambe (19th), and Shrewsbury (21st), which only heightens the need of finding the right manager who can rejuvenate the club following their stuttering start to the season.
Michael Flynn is a young, talented manager on an upwards trajectory who recently left Newport and has since been hotly linked with Championship sides Cardiff and Barnsley. He twice led the Exiles to the League Two play-off final and can now be backed as one of the early frontrunners for Fleetwood at 5/1 with Bet Victor.
There’s a long list of out-of-work managers with EFL experience on their CVs. From veterans like Neil Warnock, Mick McCarthy, Paul Tisdale, Chris Hughton and Nigel Adkins to young managers looking for their next opportunity, such as Jonathan Woodgate, Sam Ricketts, and Chris Beech who has been attracting attention since the market opened up.
Alex Neil, John McGreal, Neil Harris, Neil Lennon, and Sol Campbell have featured in a fair few next managers of late as they seek out their next job, while Steve Bruce - who has thrown his name in the frame for the Man Utd job - can be backed at 12/1.
When it comes to National League managers, James Rowe is enjoying an excellent campaign at leaders Chesterfield, Luke Garrard is flying at Boreham Wood, similarly Pete Wild (14/1) at FC Halifax Town. Meanwhile, former England U20s boss Paul Simpson can be backed at 10/1.
Fleetwood could look to appoint a young coach or manager with a connection to the club e.g. an interinal appointment such as caretaker Stephen Crainey, or Barry Nicholson (6/1) who has been coaching at the Lancashire outfit since 2014 and is currently employed as first-team coach.
Former Cod Army midfielder Anthony Barry, who was linked with a return in January, is in at 8/1 to venture into full-time management with his old side.
He’s caught the eye coaching at Chelsea, a job he combines with a position on the Republic of Ireland coaching staff, while he’s previously worked under Paul Cook at Wigan. "He's top quality in analysing games and giving his opinion and he's very experienced,” Thomas Tuchel said earlier this year. “I feel very comfortable on the pitch when he is in charge of exercises. He's very comfortable in front of the group.”
Current Colne manager Nathan Rooney (20/1) spent three years at Fleetwood where he held a number of roles, including Professional development Phase Lead manager, U23s coach, and youth team manager.
Full odds below...
