Old glory doesn’t count much in today’s football. Just ask Thomas Tuchel. The German saw the door at Stamford Bridge because of the team’s poor start to the season – and the fact he brought the Champions League trophy to London wasn’t enough to save him. Now, Julen Lopetegui is on the brink at Sevilla. Despite the Europa League glory and qualifying for the Champions League, he is close to getting fired in Andalusia.Following their 2-0 defeat to Atletico Madrid on Saturday, Sevilla are left with just one win and three draws from their opening nine games of the season, translating to five points in La Liga. The fans in Sevilla are losing patience, and so is the board. It now looks like a matter of time before the Basque coach is relieved of his duties – with four names circulating the Spanish press as potential successors.7 points from 5 games. Julen Lopetegui’s time at Sevilla might come to an end pretty soon. pic.twitter.com/MO0pAf5pS7— The Red Fury ™ (@SpainSystem) October 1, 2022 Jorge Sampaoli – the Argentinean, who already managed Sevilla in the 2016/17 season- appears to be the favorite to get the job. Since then, he has gone through the Argentine national team, Santos and Atletico Mineiro in Brazil. He had a good season last term with Olympique de Marseille in France but decided to leave his post after a fallout with club owners.Rafael Benitez – The former Real Madrid, Liverpool, Inter, Napoli, Newcastle and Everton boss. Have we forgotten someone? Ah yes, Valencia and some Chinese team. Benitez has a world of experience, but it’s been a while since he last performed at the highest level. He’s also not worked in his homeland since 2016. Even though he’s got the most respectable pedigree, he seems reluctant to work in Spain.Jose Bordalas – one of Spain’s next generation coaches who should be a good fit for the job. He was last in charge at Valencia but left the post at the end of last season after a big bust-up with eccentric owner Peter Lim.Javi Gracia – Yet another former Valencia coach. He was briefly in charge of Watford, the club that changes coaches as often as we change socks. He tried to build his career in Qatar with Al-Sadd, but that’s no more than a money-grabbing exercise. His chances of getting the Sevilla gig are slim.##NAJAVA_MECA_6686170##Although the pressure is becoming unsustainable, Sevilla fans would be justified in asking why this decision was not made before the international break. Los Nervionenses will now be playing every three or four days until the World Cup, making a change of manager difficult at best.
