Sam Allardyce has returned to management with West Brom following the sacking of Slaven Bilic.
Bilic was dismissed by Albion on Tuesday with the club lying second bottom of the Premier League on seven points, having won only once in 13 matches this term.
Here, the PA news agency looks at previous occasions when Allardyce has been brought in by a club to perform a rescue act.
Blackburn
After a lengthy and successful spell with Bolton and a briefer and less happy stint at Newcastle, Allardyce was appointed as Blackburn boss in December 2008, succeeding Paul Ince. At that point Rovers were 19th in the top flight – they finished the season 15th, seven points clear of the relegation zone, and Allardyce subsequently guided them to 10th a year later before being dismissed in December 2010 by the club’s new owners.
West Ham
The Hammers had just been relegated from the Premier League when Allardyce replaced Avram Grant in the summer of 2011. He oversaw an immediate return to the big time, via the Championship play-offs, and finishes of 10th, 13th and 12th followed. He parted company with the club in May 2015 – with Bilic then coming in to succeed him.
Sunderland
Allardyce took charge at the Stadium Light, following the departure of Dick Advocaat, in October 2015 with the Black Cats sat 19th in the Premier League table. Their eventual position that term was 17th, with survival secured via a 3-0 win over Everton in their penultimate game of the campaign, part of a run of 14 matches which featured only two defeats. Allardyce left in the summer to become England manager.
Crystal Palace
Having stepped down after only one game as England boss following a newspaper sting, Allardyce was back in club management in December 2016 as he assumed the hotseat at Crystal Palace, who had sacked Alan Pardew the previous day. Seventeenth in the Premier League at that point, the Eagles ended up 14th and Allardyce opted to depart soon after the season finished.
Everton
When Allardyce was named as Everton boss in November 2017, succeeding Ronald Koeman, the club were 13th in the table, having just won for only the second time in eight league games. He guided the Toffees to an eighth-placed finish before parting ways with the club following the season’s end. His appointment had not been popular among Everton fans and rumblings of discontent had grown during his tenure, with the style of play a major source of complaint.
