Steve McClaren has emerged as the odds-on favourite to succeed Avram Grant as West Ham manager.
Former England boss emerges as front-runner to succeed Grant
Steve McClaren has emerged as the odds-on favourite to succeed Avram Grant as West Ham manager.
The former England boss saw his odds tumble on Monday to 1/3 with
Sky Bet to take over at Upton Park.
McClaren has been out of work since losing his job at Bundesliga side Wolfsburg earlier in the season.
The Hammers went down to the npower Championship after squandering a 2-0 lead at fellow strugglers Wigan on Sunday to lose 3-2.
Just over an hour after the final whistle at the DW Stadium, a statement from the club confirmed Grant's time in charge of the east London outfit had come to an end.
The decision was made before the team departed for their journey home to the capital, with the owners deciding Grant, who was appointed on a four-year contract last summer, was no longer the right man to lead the club forward.
The club are now in the hunt for a new manager with McClaren making the early running in the betting.
Whoever takes over from Grant will be charged with the task of bringing them straight back up to the top tier with the Hammers preparing to move in to the Olympic Stadium. Sky Bet offer 2/1 for them to be promoted next season and 7/1 to be crowned Championship champions.
Sky Bet football trader Mike Triffitt said: "We've been cutting the price all morning but punters have continued to back McClaren to be Grant's successor.
"However, there seems to be little movement out there from West Ham and it might just be the perfect time to back one of the other candidates with the market so distorted amid the McClaren speculation."
After succeeding Gianfranco Zola, Grant oversaw four defeats in his first four league games, a sequence which set the tone for the rest of the campaign.
There was a brief revival when West Ham took 10 points from five fixtures between February 2 and March 5, including a memorable 3-1 home victory over Liverpool.
By that stage Grant had used the transfer window to sign striker Demba Ba and acquire Robbie Keane and Wayne Bridge on loan, while Thomas Hitzlsperger, who joined the club the previous June, made his long-awaited debut after recovering from injury.
However, the Hammers lost inspirational midfielder Scott Parker to an Achilles problem last month, and did not have enough to get themselves out of trouble, with Sunday's sixth defeat in seven league games sealing their fate.
