Premier League: Aston Villa boss a victim of Pardew's ascent

Paul Lambert is back under pressure after six successive defeats

Michael Lintorn looks at how Alan Pardew's revival has altered the Next Manager to Leave Position market...

When Alan Pardew was friendless this autumn, Betting.Betfair twice offered support, firstly advising punters to lay him at 1.51 to be the next Premier League boss to go after a 0-4 loss at Southampton in mid-September, then tipping Newcastle to finish above Sunderland at 2.1 a month ago.

As Pardew is now 17.5n/a to be the next manager to leave his position and the Magpies are 1.251/4 to maintain possession of the north east's bragging rights, leading by two points having trailed by four at the time of tipping, it seems appropriate to thank Mike Ashley for a skilled show of composure.

However, while Pardew can breathe a sigh of relief at slightly improved job security, Premier League convention dictates that another tactician or two has to be shoved into the firing line instead.

It looked like his derby rival Gus Poyet would be the fall guy. Indeed, that case was made on these pages when the Uruguayan was 16.0. After all, Sunderland changed coach mid-season in each of the last three campaigns and, as Roy Keane, Martin O'Neill and Paolo Di Canio proved, Wearside flavours of the month tend to rapidly turn sour.

Poyet sprinted in to 4.0 following his own St Mary's moment, an 0-8 thrashing in which the Black Cats practically invited the soaring Saints to embarrass them, but has drifted back out to 12.011/1 in the wake of Monday night's priceless 3-1 victory at Crystal Palace.

Harry Redknapp has been the other hot candidate throughout Pardew's redemption and remains the 3.39/4 frontrunner, though he was as short as 1.55 before QPR's promising performance against Liverpool, a win over Aston Villa and a narrow defeat to Chelsea strengthened his standing.

Some believe that the veteran's enthusiasm for football is fading, prompting suspicion that he may ultimately tire of criticism and retire, but chairman Tony Fernandes often gives the impression of being in awe of his manager and has publicly backed him, so a separation doesn't appear imminent.

Instead, it is Paul Lambert who is feeling the heat at present, shooting in from 27.0 to 5.59/2 second favouritism to be the next one axed. It has been a weird year for the Aston Villa boss. Many thought that he wouldn't make it through the summer having lost many Villa supporters, then they took ten points from their first four games to earn him a somewhat premature contract extension to 2018.

Villa haven't collected a single point in their six matches since, scoring just once in the process, and while it wasn't initially a major concern because they were facing Arsenal, Chelsea, Man City and Everton, reverses away to QPR and at home to Tottenham have provoked panic. They are a point above the relegation zone and 4.57/2 to go down.

There are at least two things in Lambert's favour though: his new deal and the fact that Randy Lerner has never sacked a manager mid-season.

If it isn't to be Lambert, Redknapp or Poyet then those judged to be in the greatest danger are Crystal Palace's Neil Warnock at 12.011/1, Burnley's Sean Dyche at 13.5n/a and, most intriguingly, Liverpool's Brendan Rodgers at 17.016/1.