Sam Allardyce: The Premier League relegation battle specialist

The English manager has agreed to become The Whites’ new manager

In their last-ditch effort to stay in the Premier League, Leeds United plan to replace Javi Gracia with Sam Allardyce, forgoing the flashy hires in favour of someone who isn't afraid to get their hands dirty. Here is a recap of Sam Allardyce's prior relegation battles in the Premier League:

7. 2001-02: Bolton Wanderers

Just a year after guiding the club to the Premier League, Bolton was where Big Sam had his first movement with the drop zone. Bolton was prepared to be demoted immediately after a 12-game losing streak between November and February, but decisive victories over top-half opponents like West Ham, Charlton, and Aston Villa quickly eased concerns.

Following an impressive 1-1 draw with Tottenham, which propelled Bolton to 16th place, a 4-1 victory over fellow relegation contenders Ipswich effectively guaranteed Bolton's safety.

6. 2002-03: Bolton Wanderers

Bolton had another difficult year; they were 19th at Christmas in 2002 until an extraordinary in their performance in 2003 propelled the underdogs to safety.

Boxing Day saw Bolton defeat third-placed Newcastle 4-3, and the rest of the season saw only four more losses for them. During that stretch, second-placed Arsenal and eventual winners Manchester United were both held to a scoreless tie.

They need that level of play since West Ham was ultimately relegated with a staggering 42 points, finishing only two below Bolton.

5. 2008-09: Blackburn Rovers

When Allardyce was brought in to rescue a floundering Blackburn team that was 19th in December of that year, his image as a relegation expert was born. A six-game winning streak confirmed Blackburn's choice right away and all but guaranteed safety.

Blackburn had a difficult season, but they outperformed expectations with draws against Everton and West Ham, as well as a 2-1 victory against Tottenham that dispelled any doubts. Rovers finished the season in 15th place, seven points above the relegation zone.

4. 2015-16 - Sunderland

Allardyce enjoyed several productive years with West Ham after that, but his demotion fights once more called in the 2015–16 season.

When Sunderland pulled the panic button and called Allardyce, they had only three points from an eight-game run under Dick Advocaat. Despite a decisive 3-0 victory over rival Newcastle in his second match, it took the Black Cats some time to get going, and by the time April arrived, they remained in the bottom half of the table.

With four games remaining, they reduced the distance to safety with a 3-0 victory over 17th-placed Norwich, and thanks to a strong finish to the season that included victories over Chelsea and ties with Arsenal, Stoke, and Watford, Sunderland survived at Newcastle's cost.

3. 2016-17 - Crystal Palace

Allardyce was returned to the battlefields after his disastrous stint with England when Crystal Palace hired him in late December 2016 to take Alan Pardew's place. Even though they hadn't been in the danger zone at the time, they did start to fall over the following months and were ranked 19th by the final day of February.

The Eagles' situation was improved by a run of four victories in five games, which included a 1-0 victory against league leaders Chelsea. In the weeks that followed, the Eagles also won against Arsenal and Liverpool.

With a decisive 4-0 victory over Hull City on the penultimate day of the season, safety was achieved.

2. 2017-18: Everton

After his tenure at Palace was over, Allardyce actually took a break from club management, but he came back in November 2017 when 13th-placed Everton called.

Relegation had never been a serious concern when the Toffees started the Allardyce era with six games without a loss. Even though Everton would finish ninth, things weren't good at Goodison Park.

No club in the Premier League recorded fewer shots than the Toffees during Allardyce's tenure, which left fans utterly unsatisfied with Everton's kind of play.

1. 2020-21: West Bromwich Albion

When West Brom fired Slaven Bilic and recruited Allardyce in December 2020, the club was in 19th place. His first game in command ended in a 3-0 loss to rivals Aston Villa, underscoring the enormity of the challenge ahead.

The Baggies would only win one of Allardyce's first 12 matches in command, but in April, West Brom managed to beat Chelsea and Southampton in rapid succession by absurd scores of 5-2 and 3-0, respectively.

However, the harm caused had already been done, and Allardyce ultimately received his first career being relegated following a seven-game losing streak.