The Shortest Managerial Tenures in the Premier League

It's Just Who We Are Mate.

So, Ange Postecoglou was sacked yesterday by Nottingham Forest after five matches and 39 days in charge, making him the 2nd quickest manager to be relieved of his duties in Premier League history.  

The Australian was handed his P45 only 19 minutes after his side suffered a 3-0 home defeat to Chelsea. The defeat left Ange with only a single point from his five league games in charge.

But who else has had premature Premier League tenures? 

Sam Allardyce - Leeds United, 4 Games, 30 Days, (W0 D1 L3) 

"There's nobody ahead of me in football terms. Not Pep, not Klopp, not Arteta." Allardyce stated in his first preference as Leeds manager. 

Big Sam was brought in to steady the ship after Leeds sacked their previous gaffer, Javi Garcia, who had guided them to 17th place with only four games remaining of the 2022/23 season.

Leeds' last four fixtures were no easy games; Manchester City (A), Newcastle United (H), West Ham (A) and Tottenham Hotspur (H). 

But Allardyce was a master at these situations, having only been relegated once in his managerial career. He knew what it took to get over the line.

Well, he may have known what it took, but that did not help him or Leeds. As they collected one point from their last four games, finishing 19th and being relegated to the Championship.

On June the 2nd, it was announced that the club had parted ways with Big Sam after only 30 days in charge, bestowing him with the unwanted title of the shortest managerial reign in Premier League history. 

Les Reed - Charlton Athletic, 7 Games, 40 days (W1 D1 L5)

Reed was originally brought into Charlton as Iain Dowie's assistant, but after he was dismissed on the 14th of November 2006, Reed stepped into the vacant managerial position. 

This was not Reed's first time with Charlton, as he had previously been the second in command to Alan Curbishley in 1998, helping The Addicks to achieve promotion to the Premier League.

Reed unfortunately could not repeat his successes as manager, as he only managed to secure a single victory in his seven league games in charge. Losing to Reading, Sheffield United, Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool and Middlesbrough, in addition to a home defeat in the Carabao cup to League Two outfit Wycombe Wanderers. 

The Englishman was labelled "Les Misérables" and "Santa Clueless" by the British media, as well as being bestowed with the honour of unofficial worst manager of all time by various online polls. 

Charlton gifted Reed the early Christmas present of unemployment in the winter of 2006, as on the 24th of December, he was relieved of his duties and replaced by Alan Pardew.  

Javi Gracia - Leeds United, 11 Games, 69 days (W3 D2 L6)

The man that Allardyce replaced also makes this list!

Javi Gracia stepped into the managerial helm at Elland Road in late February of 2023, after Jesse March was given his marching orders. 

The Spaniard came to Leeds with Premier League experience, having guided Watford to an 11th-place finish and an FA Cup final in the 2018/19 season. 

Gracia started well for Leeds, securing a win in a relegation six-pointer versus Southampton in his first game in charge and then collecting seven points from the next five games. 

The following five games were not as fruitful, as Leeds only managed to collect one point from a 1-1 home draw against Leicester. 

While results weren't the greatest, there wasn't a massive call from Leeds fans for Gracia to be sacked. The West Yorkshire side hadn't exactly been pulling up trees before his appointment and they were sat above the relegation zone, all be it only by points difference.

Therefore, the news of Gracia's sacking came as a bit of a surprise to everyone and the news that Sam Allardyce was his replacement came as even more of a surprise. 

Gracia later defended his tenure with Leeds, arguing that he had taken the team from the relegation zone and had earned the club more points in his eleven games than the four clubs around them.

Rene Meulensteen - Fulham, 13 Games, 75 days (W3 D1 L9)

Meulensteen initially joined Fulham as a coach in November of 2013, under then-manager Martin Jol. But within three weeks of Meulensteen's time in West London, Jol was sacked after suffering five consecutive league defeats. 

Meulensteen was immediately promoted to manager, with his first game in charge being against Tottenham Hotspur at home, which ended in a 2-1 loss.

Fulham and Meulensteen were able to bounce back four days later when they beat a struggling Aston Villa side 2-0. The league results that followed were pretty sporadic, as Fulham suffered back-to-back heavy defeats against Everton and Manchester City, before a victory in a relegation six-pointer against Norwich on Boxing Day. 

Fulham's final game of the 2013 calendar year was a tough one as Hull City put six past them away from home. However, The Cottagers started the new year positively, beating fellow London side West Ham 2-1. 

This would be Meulensteen's only league win with Fulham that year, as he only managed to pick up a single point in six games before being sacked mid-February. 

Felix Magath stepped into the vacant position but did not manage to save Fulham as they finished 19th and were relegated to the Championship.

Frank de Boer - Crystal Palace, 4 Games, 77 days (W0 D0 L4)

Following an unsuccessful 85 days in charge of Italian giants Inter Milan, Legendary Dutch defender de Boer took charge of Crystal Palace for the 2017/18 season. 

There's not much to say about de Boer's tenure at Palace other than the fact that it was a total disaster. Four league games played, seven goals conceded, zero scored. The only positive of de Boer's time in South London was a 2-1 second-round Carabao Cup win against Championship side Ipswich Town.

de Boer was sacked 77 days into his three-year contract and was referenced as the "Worst manager in the history of the Premier League" by José Mourinho. 

Woeful.

Bob Bradley - Swansea City, 11 Games, 84 days (W2 D2 L7)

Bob Bradley was announced as Swansea City manager to a controversial reception, with fans claiming that he had only been handed the job by their American owners because he too was an American. 

Bradley's tenure started poorly, only managing to achieve two points from his opening five games in charge. Bradley's sixth game in charge, however, was a modern classic. As Swansea beat Crystal Palace 5-4 with a goal in both the 91st and 93rd minute courtesy of substitute Fernando Llorente, helping The Swans to a historic win.

Unfortunately for Bradley, his next six games would only include one win, accompanied by five losses.

The American was sacked on the 27th of December following a 4-1 loss at home to West Ham.

Quique Sánchez Flores - Watford, 10 Games, 85 days (W1 D4 L5)

This was not Sánchez Flores' first time at the helm of Vicarage Road, having been in charge of The Hornets for the 2015/16 season. His first stint was seen as a success as he took a newly promoted Watford side to an FA Cup semi-final and a 13th-place finish. 

His dismissal at the conclusion of that campaign was seen by Watford fans as unfair, meaning the news of his return in September of 2017 sparked excitement for the North Londoners. 

His first game back in charge of Watford was an exciting 2-2 comeback draw against Arsenal. However, his second game was a brutal 8-0 thrashing away at Manchester City.

Watford only managed to collect three points from the following five games before finally achieving Sánchez Flores' first win back in charge, against fellow relegation fighters Norwich. 

This would be his first and only win as back-to-back losses against Burnley and Southampton saw the Spaniard lose his job on the 1st of December 2019. 

Nathan Jones - Southampton, 8 Games, 94 days (W1 D0 L7)

Nathan Jones succeeded long-serving Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhüttl in November of 2022. 

This was Jones' first time managing in the top flight of English football. And honestly, you could tell. 

It took the Welshman five games to secure his first league win, beating a struggling Everton side 2-1 away from home. But that would be his only win, as he lost the remaining three league games and was sacked in February, making him the shortest-serving non-caretaker manager in the club's history.

One of the main reasons he stayed in the job for as long as he did was due to the club's cup form under his tutelage. Jones guided Southampton to a Carabao Cup semi-final after beating Lincoln City and eventual treble winners, Manchester City, in the process. He also left with an unbeaten FA Cup record, as he beat both Crystal Palace and Blackpool, guiding The Saints to a fifth round fixture against Grimsby that he would not get to himself.