Ronald Koeman reportedly has until the end of October to save his career as Everton manager, but does this make sense?
There has been an intriguing turn of events for Ronald Koeman. He apparently has until the end of the month, to save his job at Everton.
At least that’s the case, according to a report from The Mirror. Neil Moxley writes that if Koeman doesn’t turn around the Blues’ campaign before the end of October, he will pay the price.
Assuming this is true, it makes for an interesting development, coming so soon after majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri gave Koeman a vote of confidence. Why the sudden change of heart, especially given Everton have not played again since?
We appreciate the remainder of October will play a role in determining Koeman’s future. If it all goes wrong, Everton will finish the month fighting against relegation, sitting bottom of their Europa League group and out of the League Cup.
Regardless, the apparent timing of this latest development still makes little sense. Why put even more pressure on the former Dutch international?
You can argue that no other Premier League team has had such a tough start to the 2017/18 campaign. Certainly, no one else has had to face Manchester City, Chelsea, Spurs and Manchester United in their opening seven league fixtures. (With the added difficulty of three of the games being away.)
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Of course, this can only be used as so much of an excuse, when you consider how much money Everton spent during the summer. Yes, they failed to find a replacement for Romelu Lukaku, but a team which has added the likes of Wayne Rooney, Gylfi Sigurdsson and Jordan Pickford, should not be struggling this badly.
Moxley adds that, despite the commitments in the League Cup and Europe, it will ultimately be performances in the Premier League, which will decide Koeman’s fate. This makes the upcoming games with Brighton, Arsenal and Leicester City vitally important.
Again, assuming the report is true, you have to wonder if it is somehow tied to recent speculation indicating Everton are already lining up a replacement. Is it possible Moshiri has made a promise to the next (potential) manager that he can have the job at the end of October, if Koeman continues to struggle?
Overall, it’s probably best not to take The Mirror‘s report as 100 percent accurate at this stage. Having said that — even if they are just hedging their bets — it could well come to fruition, if Koeman does struggle to find positive results on the pitch in October.
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Assuming the speculation regarding the Koeman’s future is true, what’s your opinion? Do you agree with the deadline, or should he be given longer? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.