David Wagner leaves Huddersfield Town: Mark Hudson in pole position as replacement
Huddersfield Town face a huge decision in replacing head coach David Wagner, knowing they must get the right man in to continue their progression on and off the field.
The German's exit signalled an end to Wagner's success in just over three years at the West Yorkshire club, transforming them fro Sky Bet Championship relegation candidates to a Premier League outfit.
Huddersfield currently sit bottom of the top flight and eight points adrift of safety. It's little surprise to see them huge odds-on 1/25 favourites for relegation this season.
It is understood that the club will reveal the appointment of their next head coach following Sunday's Premier League clash with Manchester City.
What makes their selection tricker, is deciding the right type of person with the right football philosophy to fit the unique style and culture developed at the club by Wagner and chairman David Hoyle
Here, using odds from Sky Bet, we look at the contenders to become the next boss of the Terriers.
Mark Hudson
Sky Bet odds: 4/1
He made over 100 appearances for the Terriers across a three-year spell and was a part of the squad that secured promotion to the Premier League.
Mark Hudson is still involved in the club and has held the position of under-23s manager since his retirement in 2017. The former defender possesses a UEFA A licence.
However, he doesn't hold a UEFA Pro Licence, which is mandatory for managing full-time in the Premier League. He does though take charge of their game against Manchester City on a caretaker basis.
It's worth noting though that an A licence does allow someone to take charge of clubs in the second-tier.
He could hold the role for up to 12 weeks, and the rules of the market state that 'caretaker and interim managers completing at least ten competitive games will be deemed the permanent manager.'
Ten games will take him up to Crystal Palace away at the end of March, which is within that allowed caretaker period.
👏 Thank you for the memories, David.#htafc (AT) pic.twitter.com/SAkD1Ll5tl
— Huddersfield Town (@htafcdotcom) January 14, 2019
Jan Siewert
Sky Bet odds: 11/10
Town appointed Wagner from Borussia Dortmund's under-23s, and Jan Siewert has been backed into 11/10 in the market to follow the same path.
He currently holds the position at the German club. He has won 25 of his 55 games in charge since joining in July 2017.
Prior to Dortmund, Siewert was assistant manager at Bochum before taking up a role in their youth academy.
He also has history with the national team. The 36-year-old was involved in Germany's under-17s and under-18s teams between 2013 and 2015.
It'll be interesting to see if he would get the job here, and if Dortmund's under-23s almost become a feeder club for the West Yorkshire outfit.
However, Sky Sports News are reporting that the German is not in the running for the job currently.
Slavisa Jokanovic
Sky Bet odds: 4/1
Jokanovic has promotions to the Premier League with Fulham and Watford on his CV, although he has only managed in the top-flight for around four months.
He's been out of work since leaving Fulham in November with the Cottagers battling for survival alongside Huddersfield.
The Terriers will know all about his work during his last job. They were hammered 9-1 over their two games against Jokanovic's Fulham in the season that Huddersfield won the Championship play-offs.
Despite that success in West London, the past couple of seasons have seen slow starts which were eventually recovered in the second-half of the season.
It'll be a fresh approach, but may not necessarily have the instant impact that they desire.
David Moyes
Sky Bet odds: 6/1
Moyes' last appointment saw him come in mid-season tasked with keeping West Ham in the division, which he did.
That said, he did move to the London Stadium in November and only secured their survival with two games left. Huddersfield don't have as much time as he was given there.
His managerial statistics in recent years don't make him a stand-out candidate though.
Moyes posted a 29% win ratio at West Ham, which isn't the worst all things considered, but just eight wins in 43 games saw Sunderland drop down to the Championship the season before.
That was his first relegation on his CV after 19 years in management and there's a real possibility of another one if he does make the switch to West Yorkshire.
Carlos Carvalhal
Sky Bet odds: 14/1
Carvalhal had a brief spell in charge of Swansea last season but ultimately couldn't prevent them from dropping down to the Sky Bet Championship.
He did have an immediate effect in the short-term though, his first game at the club saw a win over Watford, while the Swans would secure victories against Liverpool and Arsenal in January.
They would fail to win any of their remaining nine games and finished three points adrift of safety.
It was clear towards his end at Sheffield Wednesday that a fresh project was needed. The highlights of reaching the play-off final were overshadowed by the infamous £20 note press conference.
His personality might be the one required to lift the squad's spirits with the club so far away from 17th place at this point in the season, and his record at Swansea suggests that he could get those early wins too.
The Terriers may be able to build on that, but again, there's a lot of 'what ifs' involved.
Best of the rest
Alan Pardew is floating around the market and currently sits at a price of 14/1. He's on the lookout for a new job after leaving West Brom late last season.
Another name in the market is Christoph Buhler. He was Wagner's assistant at both Huddersfield and Borussia Dortmund, although he may follow Wagner into another job should he get one soon.
King of the Jungle Harry Redknapp is an outsider, so too is Steve Evans, who has managed two other Yorkshire clubs in Leeds and Rotherham and currently sits in the play-offs with his Peterborough side. He can be backed at 40/1.
Odds correct at 1755 GMT (15/01/18)
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