The former Middlesbrough boss currently leads the Birmingham City betting.
Former Middlesbrough manager Aitor Karanka
Former Middlesbrough boss Aitor Karanka and ex-Birmingham City pair Lee Carsley and Steve Cotterill are among the leading contenders to replace Harry Redknapp at St Andrew’s with Sky Bet.
Redknapp was sacked on Saturday after Birmingham suffered their sixth straight defeat, against Preston North End.
Carsley, the one-time Blues captain, has since taken the reins on a temporary basis, but is only second in the running at 2/1, according to the bookmakers, with Cotterill, the former assistant to Redknapp, behind him at 3/1.
England Under-21 coach Lee Carsley
And it is Karanka, at 6/4, who currently leads the betting, having remained unemployed since leaving Middlesbrough by mutual consent earlier this year.
The Basque previously led Middlesbrough back to the Premier League in 2016, having seen them beaten in the Championship play-off final 12 months earlier.
But according to Sky Sports’ Spanish expert Guillem Balague, Karanka recently turned down the chance to manage hometown team Deportivo Alaves as he is ‘not in the strongest of places’ following the death of his father.
Carsley, who had been combining roles as England Under-21s’ assistant manager and Birmingham’s Head Professional Development coach, previously managed Blues trio Jota, Harlee Dean and Maxime Collin at Brentford.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
