Three bottom-half Premier League clubs have appointed a new manager in November. Spotting the odd man out is scarcely hard. Unai Emery and Julen Lopetegui are both recent Europa League winners. In each case, a Spaniard’s last job was at a La Liga club who have often overachieved in recent years: Villarreal for the new Aston Villa manager, Sevilla for his Wolves counterpart. They have had still more prestigious posts, Emery at Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal, Lopetegui with Real Madrid and Spain.
Then there is Nathan Jones. The man Southampton chose is another Spanish speaker and may share some footballing principles with his more decorated peers. The similarities end there. In January 2016, when Lopetegui was sacked by Porto, Jones was appointed by Luton, who were 15th in League Two. Emery, meanwhile, was part way through a campaign that would bring him and Sevilla a third straight Europa League crown.
