Conte exit sets Premier League record for season sackings

Antonio Conte’s departure from Tottenham was the 11th in the Premier League this term, a record for in-season managerial changes.

The Italian’s exit by mutual consent was announced by the club on Sunday evening, with his assistant Cristian Stellini placed in charge until the summer.

Here, Football Mad looks at this season’s departures and how the tally compares to past seasons.

Timeline of trouble

Antonio Conte is the 11th Premier League manager to leave his job this season (PA graphic)

August

Scott Parker took Bournemouth to promotion last season but did not even see out their first month back in the Premier League after a 9-0 defeat to Liverpool.

September

Graham Potter left Brighton to take the newly-created Chelsea vacancy (Adam Davy/PA)

A shock Champions League defeat to Dinamo Zagreb prompted Chelsea to dismiss Thomas Tuchel. Brighton boss Graham Potter was lured to replace him.

October

Wolves moved on from Bruno Lage early in the month, before Steven Gerrard was dismissed by Aston Villa.

November

Southampton’s struggles saw Ralph Hasenhuttl sacked and replaced by Nathan Jones.

January

Everton’s ongoing relegation fears cost Frank Lampard his role at Goodison Park.

February

Nathan Jones lasted only three months at Southampton (Kieran Cleeves/PA)

Leeds ended Jesse Marsch‘s unhappy spell in charge before, a week later, Jones became the second Saints casualty of the season after just three months in charge.

March

Crystal Palace sacked Patrick Vieira after a 12-match winless run before Conte‘s increasingly fractious relationship with Spurs came to an end.

Sacking season

Eleven is a new record for in-season departures (PA graphic)

Eleven in-season departures breaks the record of 10, set on three previous occasions in the Premier League era.

The 2013-14 campaign was the first to hit double figures, with Fulham contributing two to that total as first Martin Jol and then Rene Meulensteen were shown the door. West Brom and Tottenham’s in-season appointments, Pepe Mel and Tim Sherwood respectively, lasted only until the end of the season and Spurs then lured Mauricio Pochettino from Southampton, taking the season’s final total to 13.

There were a record 15 in total in 2017-18, with again 10 coming during the season including two each from Southampton (Claude Puel and Mauricio Pellegrino) and West Brom (Tony Pulis and Alan Pardew). West Ham, Everton, Stoke and Swansea each made a second change when the season concluded, while Arsene Wenger resigned from his long reign at Arsenal.

Last season was the other to see 10 managers jettisoned during the season, including both Xisco Munoz and Claudio Ranieri being flung off the ever-erratic Watford roundabout. An 11th departure came at the end of the season as Manchester United’s interim boss Ralf Rangnick, appointed in November to succeed Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, left Old Trafford.

There have been three separate instances of nine in-season departures, in 1994-95 – when there were still 22 clubs in the Premier League – 2004-05 and 2008-09.