After ending a dismal season with a run on ten winless games, Alex McLeish was removed from his position as Aston Villa manager on Monday.

The Villains had won just two games in 2012, finishing on thirty-eight points, which is their lowest return in twenty-five years, and avoided relegation by just two points.

However, they maintain their record of competing in every season of the Premier League since its inception, though the other six teams who boast this record all finished in the top eight of the division.

In that 20 year period, twelve different managers have come and gone from Villa Park, so who will be the lucky thirteenth?

The favourite with the bookmakers is Paul Lambert of Norwich City. In just three years, the Glaswegian took the Canaries from the wrong end of League One to twelfth place in the Premier League.

Such achievements have inevitably linked a number of jobs, though many believe that if he continues his good work with Norwich, he could eventually manage an even bigger club than the likes of Aston Villa. Nevertheless, he is the favourite to take the position, with Bodog offering odds of 3.0 (2/1).

Next in line is Wigan manager Roberto Martinez. Often praised for his style of football, the Spaniard was linked with the same position a year ago, but decided to stay with the club he has such an affiliation with.

You can get odds of 6.0 (5/1) with Sporting Bet for Martinez to take this second opportunity to manage the former European Cup winners. However, it is believed that he could also have bigger aspirations, not least by Wigan chairman Dave Whealen, who would be sad to see him leave.

Mick McCarthy, who was sacked by Wolverhampton Wanderers back in March, is another name in the frame, and could be worth a punt having recently managed in the area, and expressed his desire to manage again. Also, his odds have plummeted following rumours of a meeting with Villa owner Randy Lerner though you can still get a price of 15.0 (14/1) with Bet 365 for the Yorskshireman to get the nod.

Other names being linked with the post are former caretaker boss Kevin Macdonald, Huddersfield’s Simon Grayson and out of work Rafael Benetiz, though all of the other candidate’s odds aren’t near as short as the three front runners.