Chris Sutton believes that it may be the “logical time” to sack Everton manager Ronald Koeman during the international break.
The Toffees have endured a nightmare start to the season and go into the international break with major uncertainty regarding the future of their manager.
The Merseyside club are 16th in the Premier League table after the opening seven games and lost 1-0 at home to Burnley on Sunday.
They also have just one point from their opening two Europa League group matches and it appears their major summer overhaul has not helped.
Everton’s owners financially backed the manager in the summer as he bought the likes of Wayne Rooney, Jordan Pickford and Davy Klaassen to the club, but results have dropped on the pitch.
Sutton has stated that Koeman’s future at Goodison Park is in major threat and that he would understand the decision if he was sacked.
“Ronald Koeman’s days are numbered at Everton. In truth, I struggle to see him lasting the international break,” Sutton wrote in the Mail. “I do not like to see managers lose their jobs, particularly early in the season. Frank de Boer was given no time at Crystal Palace but the situation is different with Koeman.
“When you pay out close to £150million, you do not get the luxury of time. With expectations so high, Koeman needed players to hit the ground running .For how much longer will the board back Koeman to turn things around? The international break may be the logical time for them to make a change.”
OPINION
Everton were being tipped by many to break into the top-six of the Premier League this season and on paper have a brilliant squad. However, the blatant gap in the team is the centre-forward position, where they are suffering without Belgian Romelu Lukaku. Koeman should have ensured that the Merseyside club invested most of the £75million sale of Lukaku in finding a top quality replacement. The manager could well be axed in the near future and there could be very little argument considering the poor performances on the pitch.