Monday night's Premier League action witnesses a relegation six-pointer between West Ham United and Wolverhampton Wanderers at the London Stadium.
The Hammers have suffered consecutive losses in the form of a 5-2 home defeat at the hands of Arsenal, as well as a 3-1 away loss to fellow relegation candidates Leicester City, and sit just six points clear of the drop zone.
Meanwhile, Wolves had seemingly turned matters around with consecutive wins over Southampton and Fulham, but a 4-2 defeat at home to Bournemouth, and a 4-0 thrashing at Everton subsequently followed for Gary O'Neil's men, who now sit second bottom.
However, a victory for Wolves on Monday night would see them just one point adrift of safety, heading into a home fixture against Premier League newboys Ipswich Town next weekend, and would mean that West Ham would be just three points above the relegation zone.
With a serious relegation battle currently looking likely for both sides, a defeat for either club could see them choosing to sack their manager ahead of the January transfer window.
Michael Carrick for Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough are currently going very well in the Championship, and sit fifth in the table following their 1-1 draw with automatic promotion hopefuls Burnley on Friday night.
Championship standings
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A key ingredient in Boro's play-off push so far has been the expert management of Michael Carrick, who is currently getting the very best out of attacking talent such as ex-Aston Villa man Finn Azaz, and former Bristol City starlet Tommy Conway.
However, the North East club may have to wave goodbye to Carrick, as the Hammers are eyeing him as a Julen Lopetegui replacement, according to the Daily Mirror.
Should the London club suffer a defeat to Wolves on Monday night, then that would surely see them making a move to sack Lopetegui and look to hire the Boro boss sooner rather than later.
Furthermore, while Carrick has the potential to guide Boro all the way to the Premier League, he could be tempted to make a swift move to the top-flight, especially given the fact that he spent five years with the Hammers during his playing days.
A Wolves loss to West Ham could lead to Rob Edwards' Luton Town departure
rob edwards-1
Equally, if Wolves suffer a defeat to Lopetegui's side on Monday night, they may look to move O'Neil on ahead of both key fixtures with relegation rivals Ipswich and Leicester, as well as the January window.
Meanwhile, The Telegraph have revealed that Luton boss Rob Edwards is an outsider in the frame to replace O'Neil, if the Molineux side choose to sack their current manager.
Similarly to Carrick's West Ham past, Edwards played for Wolves from 2004-2008, and has also previously been one of the club's academy coaches.
The argument could be made that the Welshman would be a risky hire for the West Midlands side, given the fact that he is currently struggling in the Championship with the Hatters, who sit just two points above the drop zone, while he also failed to keep his club in the Premier League last term.
But from Edwards' point of view, trading a second tier relegation battle for an opportunity to manage a top-flight outfit who he used to play for would be somewhat of a no-brainer.
While the eyes of the world will be on the Premier League relegation battle, and the ramifications that Monday night's fixture between West Ham and Wolves could have on that, both Luton and Boro will know that the outcome could have serious consequences for them too.
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