| Hughes and Zola Favourites for QPR Job |
Neil Warnock was officially sacked as QPR manager yesterday and the bookmakers are already listing Mark Hughes and Gianfranco Zola as the firm favourites to fill the Loftus Road hot seat.Sky Bet is offering the former Fulham manager, Hughes, at 1/9 such is his popularity in the betting market already. In recent months, Hughes has been linked with the Sunderland job and other jobs in the Premiership where the manager has come under hard scrutiny from the fans and media such as at Bolton, Chelsea and Blackburn.
Gianfranco Zola only enjoyed a brief spell managing West Ham but this tenure ended with the Hammers narrowly avoiding being relegated to the Championship. Zola is listed at 5/1 with Sky Bet and is seen as a popular choice with QPR owner Tony Fernandes.
The only other potential candidate being strongly fancied by Sky Bet right now is ex-Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez. Benitez guided Liverpool to that famous Champions League victory in Istanbul over AC Milan in 2005. He is available at 10/1.
Names such as Steve Bruce (14/1), Sven Goran Eriksson (14/1), David Moyes (16/1), Alan Curbishley (18/1) and Roberto Di Matteo (20/1) are also available but are considered to be more present to fill the field of potential candidates rather than being seen as genuine contenders for the position at the Premier League strugglers.
For those punters that feel Fernandes might splash the cash to bring a big name to the club, Sky Bet has Guus Hiddink on the market at 22/1 and Diego Maradona at 50/1. For those nostalgic punters, there is also the chance to bet on Ian Holloway at 33/1 or Gerry Francis at 50/1.
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