David Ornstein and Greg ‘O’Keeffe of The Athletic have reported that Rafa Benitez’s sacking is moving ever closer following a dismal Premier League defeat to bottom club Norwich City on 15th January.
Meanwhile, the ever-reliable Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that the board is pushing to change the side’s management as soon as a viable replacement has been found and a compensation agreement with Benitez reached.
Everton board now pushing to sack Rafa Benitez immediately. Next steps before final decision is to find the right replacement and agree on compensation. 🔵 #EFC
Nothing official yet – but the plan is to fire the Spanish manager, as first reported by @David_Ornstein today. pic.twitter.com/rfqituIVZg
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 15, 2022
Rafa Benitez’s Sacking Imminent
Dismal Form
Everton fans have not been happy from the day that Rafa Benitez was appointed as their new manager, with his Liverpool connection and reference to Everton as ‘a small club’ just too much for many to forgive and forget.
Now, following a poor performance and defeat to bottom club Norwich City, it is looking as though the board are starting to adopt the same viewpoint as the fans, with Benitez’s sacking reportedly imminent.
Everton have only managed to win one game in their last eleven, and during the Norwich game a number of banners demanding that ‘Benitez, get out of our club’ were spotted.
At the final whistle, he scurried down the tunnel as if he knew that his time was already up.
Despite a positive start to the season, Everton have now slipped to 15th place in the league and are now just six points above the relegation zone. There is a real fear that they could get dragged into the battle to beat the drop if a change is not made soon.
Future
The Athletic reported on Benitez’s comments after the defeat at Carrow Road and there is a sense that he is aware his future is very much hanging in the balance.
“I am a professional. I have enough experience and I came here to fix issues that, maybe, are coming from five years ago. I have to make sure I analyse these kinds of mistakes we are making and avoid that for the future. Other things are not in my hands. I have to do my job.”
Everton face Aston Villa next but whether Benitez remains in charge for that game may well be decided in the coming week.
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