Stoke City are now interested in Blackburn Rovers boss Jon Dahl Tomasson as a replacement for Alex Neil following his sacking on Sunday.
The Potters have never finished above 14th in the Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in 2018.
Gary Rowett, Nathan Jones, Michael O’Neill and now Alex Neil have all had a go at getting Stoke back on track, but all have come up short – despite impressing in other jobs.
Stoke’s defeat to Sheffield Wednesday last weekend proved to be the end for Neil and the hunt for his successor is now on.
Stoke City interested in Jon Dahl Tomasson
The Telegraph’s John Percy now reports that Stoke are identifying their targets.
It’s stated that John Eustace, Michael Beale and Paul Heckingbottom have all been spoken to about replacing Neil.
Eustace is a former Stoke midfielder who was axed by Birmingham City this season, Beale was sacked by Rangers in October and Heckingbottom recently left Sheffield United.
All three are out of work so Stoke can freely speak to them, but they do like an in-work manager – Blackburn Rovers boss Jon Dahl Tomasson.
Percy highlights that Stoke are at the ‘very early stages’ of their search but Tomasson is admired inside the club.
Tomasson was a prominent striker in his playing days, turning out for Newcastle United, Feyenoord and AC Milan among others.
The Dane turned to coaching and really impressed with Malmo, winning two league titles.
Blackburn landed Tomasson in 2022 and he narrowly missed out on the Championship playoffs last season.
Now just two points outside the playoffs this season, Tomasson will be looking to break into the top six.
Tomasson’s style of play has been described as ‘fantastic’, ‘very brave’ and ‘crazy in a positive way’ by Leeds United boss Daniel Farke.
That may be what Stoke are looking for but convincing him to leave Blackburn for Stoke will be a tough ask given their record in recent years.
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