David Wagner’s days in the Norwich City hot seat could well still be numbered, even in spite of a comeback 3-2 win at Cardiff City this weekend.
The Canaries are performing way below pre-season expectations, promotion hopes in the summer now replaced by relegation fears with the underperforming Yellows sat in a lowly 16th spot in the Championship.
There’s plenty of potential managers waiting in the wings if Wagner is sacked to take over at Carrow Road, with one name even guiding his side into the Championship playoffs in a previous tenure.
Here are five names that could replace Wagner at Norwich…
1
Frank Lampard
Linked with the Norwich vacancy in the past – lined up for a managerial switch to Norfolk right up until Dean Smith was appointed in 2021 – Frank Lampard is back in the running at Carrow Road to be the next boss if Wagner is shown the door.
Lampard will want to return to management soon after a scathing experience in the Chelsea dug-out as caretaker boss, the ex-Stamford Bridge icon turned boss having his managerial credentials questioned in recent times.
His most successful patch as a manager was at second tier level with Derby County however, the ex-Rams man spearheading his exciting team boasting the likes of Mason Mount, Harry Wilson and Fikayo Tomori to within touching distance of an unlikely promotion – losing out at Wembley in the eventual playoff final to Aston Villa in 2019.
Could the 45-year-old be tempted by the Canaries vacancy if the opportunity presented itself?
2
Mark Robins
The hierarchy at Norwich could well look to a former Yellows great as a player to win back fans as the next potential manager, poaching Mark Robins from fellow Championship side Coventry City to return to Carrow Road.
Robins has performed wonders at the Sky Blues, taking the club from League Two all the way up to the second tier with last season seeing his plucky side lose out narrowly in the Championship playoff final on penalties to Luton Town.
It would be a monumental effort to prise the 53-year-old away from Coventry, but an effort worth undertaking to get Norwich back on track.
3
John Eustace
Norwich could go for this recently sacked manager, John Eustace let go of by Birmingham City in bemusing circumstances however – the 44-year-old binned for Wayne Rooney to take over controversially.
Eustace was doing a commendable job at St Andrews before being dismissed to the dismay of Blues supporters, winning his final game 4-1 versus West Brom with Rooney then coming in and failing to win ever since.
The former Blues man deserves another crack at a second-tier job, with Norwich a possible next destination.
4
Scott Parker
Formerly of AFC Bournemouth and Fulham as a manager, Parker could well welcome a return to the English game as boss after a turbulent reign out in Belgium with Club Brugge – leaving the Jan Breydel Stadium with a dire 16.7% win percentage.
Still, the former West Ham player turned manager has achieved notable successes in the EFL with the Cherries and the Cottagers from the dug-out.
With two promotions on his resume from the second tier up to the top flight, before his time at both teams went pear-shaped in the Premier League, Norwich could look to the 43-year-old as an immediate option to guide the Canaries back into the promotion reckoning.
5
Chris Wilder
Bruised from successive poor stints in charge at both Watford and Middlesbrough, Wilder will want to show to everyone he still has the capabilities to be a fantastic manager at EFL level again.
His time at Sheffield United saw the 56-year-old revolutionise a downtrodden Blades outfit, taking the club from League One obscurity to an unprecedented ninth spot in the Premier League under his celebrated tenure.
For this alone, the ex-Blades boss’ name will be floating about to replace Wagner if the German manager is put out of his misery.
