The bookies rarely get it wrong - and so it has proved again following the departure of Glenn Hoddle as manager of Tottenham.
Hoddle was 4-1 joint favourite at the start of the season to be the first Premiership manager to lose his job.
And following Saturday's 3-1 home defeat to Southampton, he now has the dubious honour of being the first managerial casualty of the new campagn.
The irony that Hoddle left Saints to join Spurs in such acrimonious circumstances two-and-a-half-years ago hangs heavy in his slipstream.
And while he has struggled to make his mark at White Hart Lane, Southampton have prospered, reaching the FA Cup final on a tight budget and qualifying for the Uefa Cup.
Hoddle's apologists might cry that it was far too early for him to go.
But a closer inspection of his record at Tottenham indicates his was living on borrowed time.
In the two full seasons that Hoddle has been in charge, Spurs have finished ninth and 10th, amassing 14 wins, 14 defeats, eight draws and 50 points each time.
In short, there has been little improvement.
And if you examine the club's form over the last seven months, it's clear they are in big trouble.
The fact that Hoddle has spent nearly �30m in his time in charge, more than arch-rivals Arsenal in the same period, does not help his defence.
Hoddle cannot claim that the side he has assembled is not his own, though he would no doubt argue that he has not had enough time to realise its full potential.
Injuries have also hampered his plans, but the tame surrender to Southampton raised new questions about Hoddle's man-management skills.
"No one at Tottenham would shed a single tear if Glenn Hoddle was sacked tomorrow," midfielder Tim Sherwood said on leaving White Hart Lane last season.
"The only way they will bring success back to Tottenham is through a change of manager.
"The dressing room is not together and there is no team spirit. The manager won't accept anyone else's point of view and just leaves them all confused."
The bitter words of an upset man, maybe, but the number of disaffected players to leave Spurs in the last year suggests that there may be more than a grain of truth to Sherwood's comments.
Teddy Sheringham, Les Ferdinand, Steffen Freund and Ben Thatcher have all left under a cloud.
A year ago, Hoddle was basking in the fans' praise as his side sat on top of the Premiership. He was Barclaycard manager-of-the-month and all seemed set fair.
But the season that began with such promise ended on a calamitous bum note, with a 4-0 thrashing at home by Blackburn and a 5-1 reverse at Middlesbrough.
And with little sign of improvement so far this season, the former idol of the White Hart Lane terraces was always going to find it hard to remain in charge.
MMIX
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The only way they will bring success back to Tottenham is through a change of manager 
