When Alex Neil departed Sunderland in August, the Black Cats sat fifth in the Championship. Two wins and two draws from their five games gave them a points per game average of 1.6 and effectively made Neil the fifth best manager in the division.
With the Scotsman fresh from a League One promotion, Stoke could rightly claim to have pulled off something of a coup with his capture. However, after 23 second tier games in charge of Stoke, the Potters sit 19th and Neil has slid down to 20th in a league table of Championship bosses.
A return of just 26 points from 23 games in charge of the Potters - a points average of 1.13 - is behind Neil’s slide, with his season point per game average now down at 1.21. It is not surprising the knives are being sharpened at the Bet365 Stadium.
