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Preston North End have already acted. Paul Heckingbottom was sacked on 13 September after six defeats in seven league games, and Graham Alexander was appointed in his place on 28 September. Eight games in, only five points separate 16th from 24th, so the Championship relegation odds are worth a look before boards decide who gets until Christmas. These four managers head into the international break under the most pressure.
Burnley: Nicky Hayen
Burnley are the only side in the division without a league win. Four draws and four defeats leave them bottom on four points, and their 17 goals conceded are the joint-most in the league.
Hayen arrived on 10 July on a three-year deal, with a Belgian Pro League title and a Belgian Cup from his time at Club Brugge. He has since lost Zian Flemming, who scored twice in the opening-day 2-2 draw with West Ham before he was sold to Ipswich Town for £20 million on 1 September.
The 1-1 draw with Derby County was a game Hayen himself had called a must-win. Asked afterwards whether he would still be in charge for the trip to Watford on 10 October, he replied: “I don’t know.”
Derby County: John Eustace
Derby finished eighth in 2025-26, four points off the play-offs. This season they are 22nd with five points, and their only league win came against Portsmouth on 1 September.
The 2-1 defeat to Birmingham City on 12 September brought calls from supporters for Eustace to go. There is mitigation. A takeover involving Turki Alalshikh collapsed in August, which restricted summer spending, and Sky Sports pundit Andy Hinchcliffe noted that Carlton Morris, Patrick Agyemang and Matt Clarke “have to be playing week in and week out” for Derby to compete.
Eustace has a contract to 2028 and credit from keeping the club up in 2024-25, when he took over with Derby in the relegation zone. Five defeats in eight games is already testing that credit.
Watford: Alessio Dionisi
No owner in the division moves faster than Gino Pozzo. Paulo Pezzolano was sacked after 10 games in October 2025, and Edward Still lasted less than three months before going on 3 May.
Dionisi, who won Serie B with Empoli in 2020-21, signed a two-year deal on 15 June. Watford won two of their first six league games, then lost to Stoke City and Bristol City. They now sit 20th on eight points, with four defeats in their last five.
After the 1-0 loss at Ashton Gate on 18 September, Dionisi pointed to a line-up with six young players in it and asked for patience. Burnley visit Vicarage Road on 10 October, so the first game back puts two managers from this list in opposite dugouts. For anyone studying the Sky Bet Championship odds, that result is the clearest early pointer to who lasts until Christmas.
Norwich City: Philippe Clement
Clement was appointed on 18 November 2025 on a deal to 2029. Norwich have three wins and five defeats, and they sit 17th on nine points.
The problem is at the back. Norwich have conceded 17, level with Burnley, including four in each of their last two league games. They lost 4-3 at Middlesbrough and then 4-3 at home to Bolton Wanderers, promoted from League One in 2025-26.
Clement has been here before. Rangers sacked him in February 2025 when they fell 13 points behind Celtic, and a slide into the bottom three would leave him with little to argue with at Carrow Road.
