Championship Sack Race spells trouble for Hyypia, Holloway and Jackett

In contrast to the placid nature of the 2014/15 Premier League Sack Race, its Championship counterpart has once again proved to be a thoroughly peppy affair. An eye-popping 12 managers have already departed since the dawn of the current campaign, a staggering tally that has every chance of expanding before we hit Christmas, with a number of gaffers under pressure as we approach the 21st wave of fixtures this weekend.

Below we take a look at three second-tier gaffers who are teetering on the brink in the Championship Sack Race Odds.

Sami Hyypia (Brighton) @ 2/1

Top of the pile is Brighton boss Sami Hyypia who has endured a truly torrid time since picking up the reins during the summer. Only Wigan and Blackpool sit below the struggling Seagulls in the table, with 18 points from 20 matches leaving the club two points adrift of safety in 22nd; a lowly standing that shows little sign of changing considering that they have scraped just one win from their last 16 league games. The club's plight is made all the more remarkable considering that they have made the play-offs for the past two seasons, which has subsequently left fans frustrated at the sudden decline.

On Friday night Hyypia's job is on the line when his troops take to field live on Sky Sports for a crunch clash at home to Ian Holloway's Millwall, who are just two points and two places above them in the table. A third defeat in a row is likely to spell the end of the former Bayer Leverkusen managers' tenure at the Amex stadium, while a draw is unlikely to improve his increasingly vulnerable position.

Ian Holloway (Millwall) @ 12/1

It goes without saying that Holloway is also under immense pressure as his side make the trip to south coast on Friday. The Millwall boss is in the midst of his own dire run - one win in 15 - which includes last weekend's 5-1 thrashing at the hands of Middlesbrough. If his side slump to another defeat on Friday, and Rotherham pick up a point or more at home to Nottingham Forest, they will slip into the relegation zone.

The omens don't look good ahead of the match as Millwall have not beaten Brighton in six meetings, dating back nearly five years. Holloway is simply desperate to put a halt to that rotten run and in the process recover from the Boro battering, which the charismatic boss described as "his worst day in football".

Kenny Jackett (Wolves) @ 6/1

As recently as the end of November Wolves gaffer Jackett was a 40/1 shot for the chop, however he is now the joint second-favourite at 6/1 with Bet Victor. Last season Jackett won numerous plaudits for leading the Midlands club to promotion at the first time of asking. The 52-year-old did so in style by winning the League One title with a record points haul (103).

Just over a month ago Wolves were soaring high on their return to the Championship, only to suffer a dramatic decline which has seen them plummet down to 13th following a shocking six game winless run. Jackett's wounded men now head into this weekend's match away to Sheffield Wednesday - who are one points above them - on the back of five consecutive defeats, including last Saturday's 3-1 defeat at Bournemouth, which saw Wolves owner Steve Morgan explode in a fit of rage, suggesting that his patience is wearing thin.