League One sack race: Ian Evatt next to follow Ryan Lowe’s path after Blackpool latest
Blackpool manager Ian Evatt could be the next manager relieved of his duties in League One after a 4-0 loss to Plymouth Argyle deepened relegation their fears.
The last manager to be sacked in the third tier was Ryan Lowe, who left his post as Wigan Athletic boss on 7 February after they had dropped into the bottom four.
Wycombe Wanderers, Luton Town and Huddersfield Town are among other clubs that have done the same at some point this term, with eight different bosses being sacked up to now.
Blackpool have also already dismissed a manager, after Steve Bruce lost his job in October following 11 months in charge at Bloomfield Road, with the club sitting in 23rd place.
Evatt was hired as his replacement later that month, but he could now be in line to be sacked too, after a shoddy run of recent results for the Tangerines.
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Ian Evatt under real pressure at Blackpool after crushing Plymouth defeat
Blackpool were at the foot of the table when Evatt arrived, after Stephen Dobbie failed to win either of his league games as interim boss.
Three wins in three to begin his tenure at the club he played over 250 times for between 2006 and 2013 meant the 44-year-old initially looked like a shrewd hire, but his squad has struggled for form ever since.
The Tangerines have won just five of their last 16 League One outings, and are now winless in four after a damaging 4-0 home defeat to fellow strugglers Plymouth on Saturday.
Tom Cleverley’s men were three up by half-time at Bloomfield Road, with Pool now sitting 19th in the third tier and just one point away from the bottom four, who all have games in hand.
They could find themselves back in 23rd soon enough, if those games do not go their way, with Evatt very clearly walking a tightrope and potentially set to be relieved of his duties if Blackpool’s form does not improve very quickly.
Who are Opta predicting to be relegated from League One?
Blackpool last played League Two football in 2017, with a two-year stint in the Championship between 2021 and 2023 between two recent League One spells.
It would be a real shock to see them relegated this season, following eighth and ninth-placed finishes in the last two years, and Opta are still backing them to survive as it stands.
Their predicted table has the Tangerines finishing 20th, just one place above the drop-zone, ahead of Wigan, Rotherham, Burton Albion and Port Vale.
Blackpool are expected to pick up 52 points, with Wigan only slightly behind on 51, but it remains to be seen if Evatt is the right man to help guide them to survival.