Back to the Southampton Newsfeed

Does sacking a manager help you avoid relegation?

Two of the clubs in the Premier League decided to roll the dice on Sunday by sacking their managers.

Southampton, nine points adrift and bottom, axed Russell Martin - the manager who got them promoted last season.

Wolves, five points off safety, sacked Gary O'Neil after a season and a half in charge.

But does sacking a manager help to bring about survival when a team are in the relegation zone?

Premier League table
Image caption, Wolves and Southampton are the Premier League's bottom two teams

Not counting this season, there have been 91 times when a team have parted company with their manager while in the drop zone - and on 36 of those occasions they avoided relegation.