Betting suggests foreign boss is an Everton certainty

Depending on where people prefer to digest their sports news, there are a number of front-runners to take over at Everton on a permanent basis this summer.

Some media outlets have the Toffees taking on Manuel Pellegrini as Roberto Martinez’s successor, while others report that Unai Emery is very much in the driving seat.

Ladbrokes’ betting for the race also leans towards the latter, with the Sevilla boss the 2/1 favourite to make the switch to Goodison Park.

Yet another foreign import, Frank de Boer, follows the Spaniard at odds of 11/4, with outgoing Manchester City boss Pellegrini at 3s and Southampton’s Ronald Koeman a 5/1 poke.

Rarely has a next-manager market for a Premier League club been so dominated by overseas tacticians.

Usually there is at least one Brit nestled in to the sharp end of the market, but with David Moyes the skinniest representative at 7/1, it appears the Merseyside club are set to shun home-grown coaches.

Of the leading contenders, all four candidates have a weight of experience and success behind them. Emery’s is likely to strike a bigger chord with Everton fans, having recently steered Sevilla to a superb second-half comeback against Liverpool to capture the Europa League.

That success in Basel made it three second-string European trophies on the spin for Emery, who has managed to maintain Sevilla’s reputation in cup competitions despite a heavy turnover of players.

With Everton one of the latest top-flight teams to be taken over by a billionaire, it seems the days of having to sell their best players to bigger clubs could be over. Clearly, that will suit Emery, as it would any manager, but those are not conditions the former Valencia man is accustomed to.

Having oodles of cash to spend is a situation far more in tune with Pellegrini’s working life. The Chilean has recently departed the oil-rich Citizens having landed two League Cups and a Premier League title during his tenure.

Malaga, who were being heavily backed financially at the time, and Real Madrid are among the other clubs Pellegrini has managed during his career and so could well turn Farhad Moshiri’s millions into consistent on-pitch performances.

A more relentless winner than either of those options is De Boer, who reeled off four Eredivisie titles with Ajax before finishing second in the last two seasons.

Although the Amsterdam side are expected to challenge for league titles each year, the former Barcelona star did so with an overall win percentage of 60 during his stay.

How the Dutchman transfers his skills to the more competitive Premier League is up for debate, but the ease with which countryman Koeman adapted with Southampton is a positive sign.

With a squad packed full of potential, whichever of the four, if any, lands the Everton job will have a matching reputation.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.