The 2025-26Premier League season has kicked off, and several managers are already on the hot seat. Some of them won’t be around for much longer. Here are the five managers most likely to be fired before 2026 begins.
5. Ruben Amorim (Manchester United)
Since Sir Alex Ferguson, every newManchester United manager has been told he’ll be given time to build. Yet, not a single one has lasted more than 30 months in charge. A third of them didn’t even make it more than a year.
Ruben Amorim has been given the same assurances from new Man Utd owner INEOS, but, based on how his team has performed so far, it’s not hard to imagine him as the next Red Devils’ boss whose project is cut short.
The former Sporting CP boss somehow made Man Utd worse than they were under Erik ten Hag. United lost five of their first nine league matches under Amorim and limped to a 15th-place finish. Amorim now has the worst win percentage in modern club history, partly due to his steadfast commitment to using a 3-4-3 tactic that doesn’t fit his players.
I’d like to think that a manager should get more than a season and a half to turn things around. However, if things keep going like they are now, Amorim will be sacked before 2026.
4. Keith Andrews (Brentford)
Brentford made the bold decision to replace Thomas Frank with their set-piece coach Keith Andrews. The Irishman was formerly an assistant manager at MK Dons and for the Ireland national team. Andrews also served as a coach under Chris Wilder at Sheffield United. He has no experience managing a first-team side.
When you combine Andrews’ inexperience with all the outgoings this summer (Christian Nørgaard toArsenal, Bryan Mbeumo to Man Utd, etc.), most people have tipped Brentford to go down.
I think Brentford have enough to stay up, especially since the three newly-promoted teams are worse on paper than them. That said, this will be a tough year for the Bees. Set pieces and aggressive pressing can only get a team so far.
If Brentford are drawn into a relegation battle early on, Andrews could definitely be sacked and replaced with a more experienced manager.
3. Daniel Farke (Leeds)
Ifstories from the end of last season are true, Daniel Farke was almost fired in the summer. Reportedly,Leeds owners were unconvinced by Farke’s past performances in the Premier League with Norwich. They were even said to be sounding out Jose Mourinho for a potential return to English football.
The rumors got so intense that Leeds chairman Paraag Marathe went onBBC Radio Leeds to “end the speculation” and confirm that Farke would be the club’s manager for the 2025-26 Premier League season.
Marathe was true to his word, and Farke is still Leeds boss today. But, where there’s smoke, there’s fire. If the club’s owners were really considering firing Farke a few months ago, I don’t expect them to give him much leeway this season.
I don’t know if it will be Mourinho, but it wouldn’t surprise me at all if someone else is in charge at Elland Road in 2026.
2. Graham Potter (West Ham)
West Ham were in 14th place when Julen Lopetegui was sacked in January 2025. Graham Potter was supposed to make them better. He hasn’t. In fact, he’s made them much, much worse.
The Hammers finished in 14th, so their position in the table was not much worse, but the showing on the field was. The club won their first league game with Potter in charge — a 3-2 victory at home against Fulham on January 14, 2025 — but would have to wait over a month for their next win.
Between January 15 and May 10, West Ham had a record of two wins, five draws, and seven losses. That’s nearly four months gone with just two wins. As bad as Lopetegui was, his team never went through a stretch like that.
What’s even worse is that West Ham have lost their tactical identity. Say what you will about David Moyes, his Hammers sides had a style that worked pretty well. They were defensive and played on the counter.
Potter has a style too, but he hasn’t yet been able to implement it at the London Stadium. If he doesn’t start making big changes soon, he will not make it to 2026 as West Ham manager.
1. Nuno Espírito Santo (Nottingham Forest)
It’s hard to believe that a manager who ledNottingham Forest to their first top-half finish in 30 years could be the first manager to be sacked this season, but that’s exactly where we are with Nuno Espírito Santo right now.
The former Wolves manager has fallen out with Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis over the lack of transfers. It’s gotten so extreme that Nuno might be fired before the end of the transfer window, according to reports.
While he has denied the rumors,calling them “absurd,” he has also admitted that he cannot confirm whether he will be Forest manager in September.
Marinakis and Nuno are set to meet sometime this week to resolve their differences. Even if that meeting goes well, this whole situation doesn’t bode well for Nuno’s future in Nottingham.
If Marinakis sees any chance to fire Nuno before 2026, I wouldn’t be surprised if he takes it.
Cody Aceveda
Cody Aceveda is a freelance writer based in Porto, Portugal. He has written for The Trivela Effect since February 2023. Cody is a fan of the Brighton, Portland Timbers, Portland Thorns, and Rayo Vallecano. He is also an experienced iGaming writer with over two years experience writing about sports betting and the sports betting industry for a variety of outlets.