'Tis the season for managerial changes. As autumn turns into winter and everyone gets their big coats out, the decision-makers across football tend to get twitchy about the man in their dugout.
Ten games of the Premier League season have now elapsed, a little over a quarter of the campaign. In times past this might seem ludicrously early to be thinking of the sack, but these days when pressure is great and results must come quickly, this is regarded as a big enough sample size to make a decision. Managerial changes have to be proactive rather than reactive: clubs have to spot the decline before it becomes terminal, and see the signs that things aren't going to improve.