Hughes regains favouritism as Martinez rejects Villa approach
Published:Roberto Martinez has turned down the chance to manage Aston Villa.
Martinez, who became the fifth favourite in the race to land the Aston Villa manager when trading at 4/6 yesterday, has drifted out to 10/1 to become the Aston Villa manager after snubbing a move to Villa Park to remain loyal to Wigan Atheltic.
Wigan chairman Dave Whelan and Martinez have held numerous talks over the past couple of days over the Spaniard’s future and the offer of a new contract is enough to stop Martinez from entering talks with Villa.
A statement on the Aston Villa website tells us that Martinez was high up on the shortlist to replace Gerard Houllier at Villa Park and his decision to not even talk to the Villa board has left the club deflated.
It leaves Aston Villa in a managerial crisis and it’s hard to see who will be tempted to manage the Villans.
Mark Hughes has been re-installed as the 6/4 favourite to land the job but with speculation suggesting he will join Guus Hiddink at Chelsea, Villa’s options look limited.
Having been unable to tempt the Wigan manager, it seems highly unlikely that Owen Coyle (5/1) and David Moyes (9/2) will be tempted to switch to Villa Park.
According to sources close to Steve McClaren, the former England manager has never been approached by Lerner to replace Houllier at Villa Park, and while McClaren would prove an unpopular choice with the fans, he looks the pick of the market at 16/1.
Rafael Benitez (8/1) has distanced himself from the job and Carlo Ancelotti (18/1) has confirmed he is to take a break from management for a year.
Alex McLeish is the 4/1 second favourite to take on the role but as current Birmingham manager, his appointment would be more unpopular than McClaren.
Former Chelsea manager Claudio Ranieri remains in the hunt for a new job and at 20/1 to replace Houllier, may be worth a small punt but the race looks to be between Hughes and McClaren.
