Today it was announced that Liverpool’s inspirational captain Steven Gerrard has been ruled out for the rest of the season with a groin injury. The skipper joins Daniel Agger, Glen Johnson and Martin Kelly on the sidelines as Liverpool’s spirited second half of the season charge up the table looks to have hit a brick wall. The Reds still harbour faint hopes of a top four finish, and return to the Champions League next season, but face an uphill climb due to their rapidly growing injury list and defeat to West Brom last weekend. Liverpool are currently sixth in the Premier League table, 10 points behind fourth placed Chelsea, having played a game more. Dalglish’s men still have to play Manchester City, Arsenal, Tottenham and Aston Villa and are outsiders to finish in the top four at 25/1 with Skybet.

Liverpool host fellow Champions League chasers Manchester City on Monday night and anything less than a win will rule out any hopes of a top four finish for the Merseyside club. Skybet have Liverpool at 11/8 to win, with Man City priced at 11/5 to pull off a win at Anfield, and whilst a draw is 9/5.

This was clearly evident when the Merseyside club spent nearly £60m in the January transfer market, spending £23m on the exciting Uruguian striker Luiz Suarez and then shocking the football world by breaking the transfer record for a British player when they paid £35m for Andy Carroll. The Liverpool captain, Steven Gerrard, has also publically stated that Dalglish is the man to spearhead Liverpool’s revival and make them serious title contenders.

However, the tides can change very quickly in football. If Liverpool were to lose a few games on the spin then Dalglish’s credentials would be meticulously examined. Liverpool’s defeat to Braga in the Europa League may just have sparked the end of his honeymoon period with the club. Should Liverpool choose not to extend the Scot’s six-month contract this summer then there are a plethora of managers waiting in the wings.

The former Aston Villa manager Martin O’Neill is the current favourite to take over from Kenny Dalglish, and is available with Paddy Power at 9/1. The bookies also offer the same odds for Jose Mourinho, who said only last week that he would love to return to the Premier League. There has recently been talk of the former Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez – who is also linked with Aston Villa – returning to the club in the summer. The Spaniard has reportedly said it would be his ‘dream’ to manage Liverpool once again and Paddy Power have him at 25/1 to do so.

Aston Villa are currently hovering dangerously above the drop zone having lost three games in a row, including a dismal defeat at home to relegation rivals Wolverhampton. Houllier has faced fierce criticism from both the supporters and his players, with the later complaining about his strict training methods. Even if Houllier keeps Villa in the Premier League it is being speculated that he will face the chop, and Sky Bet have him at odds of 1/3 to last the season.

Villa are reportedly lining up the former Liverpool and Inter Milan boss Rafa Benitez, who would be replacing Houllier for a second time having replaced him at Liverpool in 2004. Benitez has been out of work since being sacked as Inter Milan manager and is available with Skybet at 5/1. The former Blackburn manager Sam Allardyce is the current favourite to become the next Aston Villa manager at 5/2, whilst the Everton manager David Moyes is an outsider at 25/1.

Villa Chief Paul Faulkner today publically backed Gerrard but this will remain to be seen if Villa’s poor form continues.

Speculation surrounding the job at Anfield has died down slightly with the World Cup taking centre stage leaving the club plenty of time to make the right appointment ahead of a crucial season for the Reds. There is all sorts of speculation surrounding the likes of Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard meaning any new Manager will have a busy in tray when they do take up the role at the club. Dalglish is a Red through and through and will be desperate to lead the club back to where it belongs, he may be the only man that can persuade the two star man to give it one more season at the club as he looks to rebuild without Champions League football.

The argument against Dalglish and for Hodgson is the fact that the Fulham Manager has been successful in the game in recent years while Dalglish has been out of Management f0r a number of years, he had a poor spell at Newcastle some years ago and may be a little rusty when it comes to Premier League football. In the meantime Hodgson has been managing at some of the biggest clubs in Europe and leading Fulham to the Europa League Final last season and earning himself the Manager of the Year Award.

Next Liverpool Manager Odds with Paddy Power - 16/06/2010

R Hodgson – 5/6
K Dalglish – 2/1
J Klinsmann – 16/1
S Goran Eriksson – 16/1
M Van Basten – 18/1
M O’Neill – 25/1
J Toshack – 28/1
G Hiddink – 33/1
R Rijkaard – 33/1
M Hughes – 40/1
A McLeish – 40/1
Q Sanchez Flores – 40/1
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All markets supplied by Paddy Power.com

Hodgson has worked wonders at Craven Cottage over the past couple of years with the club being transformed from relegation battlers to the Europa League Final in just a matter of months under the stewardship of the former Blackburn Manager. Hodgson has spent much of his career managing across Europe both at domestic and International level, perhaps his highest profile role to date was a stint at the San Siro as the Manager of Inter Milan in the late 90′s so he knows what it takes to be successful at a big club.

Any Manager coming into Liverpool will have a tough task on their hands as they look to deal with an impeding takeover of the club whilst trying to get the Reds back into the top four next season, Paddy Power have been watching the Next Liverpool Manager Odds closely over the past few days and they believe that Roy Hodgson is in the leading candidate. He is a warm favourite to take the job but there are also a number of other contenders in the frame for the hot seat, Martin O’Neill is one that is well fancied with punters with rumours that he has been unsettled at Aston Villa for some time now. He may also want to move onto a bigger club after failing to turn Villa into a Champions League side in recent years but Randy Lerner and the Villa fans will not want to see their Manager leave to go to one of their biggest rivals any time soon.

The likes of Guus Hiddink and Marcelo Lippi have appeared to rule themselves out of the frame for the job after speculation leaving Roy Hodgson as the obvious candidate for the position, the Sack Race feels he is the ideal candidate for the club as they look to rebuild and get back to the Champions League were a club like Liverpool belong.

Next Liverpool Manager Odds with Paddy Power as of 08/06/2010 – Click to Bet

Roy Hodgson – 15/8
Martin O’Neill – 9/4
Kenny Dalglish – 8/1
Sven Goran Eriksson – 8/1
Harry Redknapp – 14/1
Marcelo Lippi – 14/1
Mark Hughes – 16/1
Guus Hiddink – 28/1
Frank Rijkaard – 28/1
Louis Van Gaal – 28/1
Manuel Pellegini – 28/1
Jurgen Klinsmann – 28/1
Alex McLeish – 33/1
Henk Ten Cate – 33/1
Others On Request

All betting markets supplied by Paddy Power

Capello of course has had great success in his homeland and more specifically at the San Siro with Inter Milan’s city rivals AC Milan in the early 90′s, with that in mind he may well find the offer to Manager the Champions League winners next season a difficult one to turn down. SkyBet have been watching the situation at Inter Milan for some time now and have opened up an exciting Next Inter Milan Manager market, at the moment Capello is featuring on the list but is by no means the favourite due to his commitments with England over the Summer. The board at Inter will no doubt have been aware for some time now that Jose Mourinho would be heading to Real Madrid this Summer, so it is likely they already have a list of names to approach over the vacancy at the San Siro.

The favourite at this stage to replace Mourinho is former Inter defender and fans favourite Sinisa Mihajlovic who has recently left Serie A side Catania, many believe his next port of call will be the San Siro and a crack at the big time with Inter Milan. Another name in the frame is Rafa Benitez who at the moment seems to be linked with every big job across Europe after a tough season with Liverpool, Benitez is yet to Manage in Serie A and the lure of the San Siro and Champions League football may prove attractive  for the Spaniard. Benitez is being well backed in the Next Inter Milan Manager market with his future at Anfield remaining uncertain with the club looking for a new buyer over the next few months.

The interesting story here though does surround Fabio Capello, he has been described as the ‘perfect candidate’ by Inter Milan supremo Massimo Moratti, much will depend on how England do in South Africa this Summer and Inter Milan will be watching things closely over the next few weeks. Capello will be left with two choices with one being to head home to Italy for one last crack in Serie A and the other will be to stay with England as they embark on qualification foe Euro 2012.

Next Inter Milan Manager Odds with SkyBet - 27/05/2010

S Mihajlovic – 5/6
R Benitez – 6/1
M Lippi – 8/1
D Rossi – 8/1
G Trapattoni – 9/1
R Hodgson – 10/1
F Capello – 12/1
G Hiddink – 12/1
M Alegri – 14/1
L Scolari – 14/1

All markets supplied by SkyBet.com

Hodgson, rightly so has been give the credit for master minding Fulham’s run in Europe which only ended with a 118th minute deflected Diego Forlan goal in the Final on Wednesday, nevertheless Fulham have had a fantastic run with wins over the likes of Juventus and Wolfsburg along the way. Since then half of the the Fulham squad have come out publicly praising the Gaffer making it very difficult for Hodgson, it may be that deep down he would like one last crack at the big time with a club like Liverpool. He has managerial experience all over the world and would be a popular appointment up on Merseyside after their terrible season with the future of Rafa Benitez hanging in the balance at Anfield.

On top of the speculation linking him to Anfield this Summer there is also thought to be some in the BOA wanting the Fulham Gaffer to take charge of a potential Great Britain football team at the London Olympics in 2012. There has been talk of forming a Team GB for a number of years for 2012 and Hodgson is being seen as the ideal man to take the role of Manager, it may be that it will be an England side under the name of GB but either way the speculation is a measure of the success Hodgson has achieved at Fulham.

The bookmakers have been watching he situation closely and Hodgson does indeed feature in the Next Liverpool Manager Odds market, this has only served to fuel the speculation but Hodgson has now of course given his clearest indication yet that he will be staying in London. Hodgson has proven adept in the transfer market at Fulham by plucking the likes of Clint Dempsey and Brede Hangeland from the virtual wilderness and turning them into top Premier League players wanted by some of the bigger clubs. With that in mind, he may be the ideal man to guide Liverpool through tough financial times and the Sack Race believes that should Liverpool come in for Hodgson then his resolved will be tested dearly with few begrudging him one last chance at a big club.

It has been a season of turmoil for the club both on and off the pitch with Benitez struggling to get the team performing to its best and it is no secret that Juventus want the Spaniard to be their next Manager at the end of the season. Benitez himself seems to be unsure on his future and is remaining tight lipped on any speculation but it appears that things are set to come to a head one way or another in the next few weeks. Several reports coming out of Anfield are suggesting that Rafa has lost the dressing room with star names Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres also considering their futures with no Champions League football to look forward to next season. It is looking likely that either Torres and Gerrard or Benitez will be at club next season and not both leaving Martin Broughton with a headache, the club are looking to reduce the their debt and it may prove tempting to sell their prized assets.

Kenny Dalglish is a hero at Anfield for both his playing and Managerial achievements at Anfield during the 80′s but has not been involved in the day-to-day running of a team for a number of years which may prove a worry for Liverpool fans. Victor Chandler have been following events at Anfield through the season and have a very lively Next Liverpool Manager Betting  market on offer for punters, Dalglish is indeed one of the favourites to take over from Benitez and is being well backed by punters. Other candidates for the job according to the odds are Roy Hodgson and Martin O’Neill who have both had excellent season’s at Fulham and Aston Villa and may see Liverpool as an excellent career move.

Next Liverpool Manager Odds with VC Bet as of 05/05/2010 – Click to Bet

Martin O’Neill 7/4
Jose Mourinho 5/2
Roy Hodgson 5/1
Guus Hiddink 5/1
Kenny Dalglish 8/1
Gerard Houllier 10/1
Bert Van Marwijk 12/1
Jurgen Klinsmann 12/1
Oswaldo De Oliveira 14/1
Marcelo Lippi 16/1
Mauricio Pelligrini 20/1
Frank Rijkaard 20/1
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It was made perfectly clear at the start of the season that the Champions League would be the priority for a team that spent in excess of £250million in the Summer, the team were dubbed the ‘new Galacticos’ after signing Kaka, Ronaldo and Xabi Alonso for huge transfer fees. Ronaldo has settled in well in Madrid but maybe looking on enviously at his former Man United teammates as they were crushing AC Milan at the same time as Madrid were being knocked out by Lyon. Publicly at least the powers that be have backed Manuel Pellegrini who has another year to run on his contract but behind closed doors it is understood that they have already started their search for a successor.

There will be two names who will jump to the top of the list for potential replacements in the Summer and they will be Arsene Wengerand Rafa Benitez who have both been linked to Madrid in the past. The Sack Race understands that Arsene Wenger and Arsenal have been approached several times in recent years to take over at Real Madrid but that their advances have been rebuked each time. Wenger is clearly the man they want long term but the Arsenal Manager will know that he will not get the same power at the Bernabeu as he enjoys at the Emirates, at Arsenal he is in control of the entire playing side of the club but at Madrid he would have to accept being just the first team coach with no say on transfers.

The logical choice would be Rafael Benitez who is a well known Real Madrid fan having played and coached there in the past as well as being born and bred in the City, he is under huge pressure at Liverpool and may see this as the ideal chance to jump ship. Liverpool are reluctant to sack Benitez due to the huge contract pay-off he would recieve but an approach from Madrid may well be welcomed by both sides as the board at Anfield look for a reason to get rid of Rafa. One sticking point in this deal for Benitez would be similar to Wenger’s in terms of control at the club, Rafa has total control at Anfield currently in terms of the playing side and he would have to be prepared to give that up if he went to the Bernabeu.

That search will begin now as Pellegrini is a dead man walking at the moment having lost the dressing room, the support of the fans not to mention Florentino Perez, the Club President was expecting success in Europe with his investment and that has not been forthcoming. The £60 million Kaka was substituted on Wednesday night after having a poor game and was clearly unhappy with the decision showing dissent as he left the pitch and that is just another nail in the Manager’s coffin.

Real Madrid Manager On the First Day Of Next Season Betting With Skybet as of 11/03/2010

Jose Mourinho 11/8
Manuel Pellegrini 3/1
Rafa Benitez 4/1
Arsene Wenger 6/1
Guus Hiddink 16/1

Odds Supplied Courtesy Of Skybet.com

There was speculation earlier in the season linking Martinez to a return to Spain and Espanyol and a defeat here could well weaken his position at Wigan, those reports were played down by the Spaniard but he knows he must keep Athletic in the top flight this season. He is a bright young Manager and Dave Whelan is known to stick by his Managers which is a good sign for Martinez but he will be looking over his shoulder somewhat with all the teams down there scrapping for their lives. The bookmakers have been watching the events at the DW Stadium very closely all season and the Next Premier League Manager To Be Sacked Odds are telling punters that Roberto Martinez is in trouble, he maybe very good value in this market with the relegation battle hotting up but a win against Liverpool could change all of that.

The match against Liverpool will be the first at the Stadium with a new pitch relaid over the last week, ironically though this could have an adverse affect against a good footballing side like Liverpool. The DW stadium turf has turned into a mud bath in recent weeks which may have helped Wigan against the top sides but that will no longer be the case, a new carpet has been laid which will be easier to play a good style of passing football on. Liverpool themselves are desperate for the three points on offer as they bid to resurrect their season by claiming that 4th spot on offer, they are in a four-way battle with Spurs, Man City and Aston Villa for that crucial money spinning league position.

This match could have a big affect on both ends of the table with the two Managers in for a squeaky bum night at the DW Stadium, Roberto Martinez in particular knows that defeat here will see Wigan slip further towards the trap door and a relgation dog fight.