Who's next in Mandaric's line of fire?

Ian Hollway's exit from Leicester City came as no real shock to the football world. After all he had just guided the Foxes to the third tier of English football for the first time in their history and Milan Mandaric isn't exactly known for his patience with managers.

So as Leicester City prepare for life in League One who is going to be the next manager to step into Milan's line of fire? Here I take a look at some of the front-runners for the vacant post and assess their chances of becoming Milan's lucky seventh.

Billy Davies

The former Derby County boss worked wonders in taking The Rams to the Premiership but he wasn't given the time, support or resources to keep them there. He had a fraught relationship with the club's board and following an awful start to the season Davies was shown the door at Pride Park. Rumour has it that Mandaric is a huge fan of Davies and has been linked with him twice previously. After managing in the Premiership this would be a huge step down for the former Preston and Motherwell coach but he must be itching to get back in the dugout. I'm not sure that his appointment would be warmly received by the Leicester faithful but promotion back to the Championship is the key for the season ahead and Davies certainly has the skills to achieve that.

Paul Lambert

The former Celtic and Borrusia Dortmund midfielder is currently available after he resigned from Wycombe Wanderers. His decision to walk away from Adams Park came as a surprise to most people and he was instantly linked with a move to Leicester City. It's fair to say that the former Scotland international wasn't universally loved by the fans at Wycombe despite taking them to the play-offs and guiding them to the League Cup semi-final. He has only been a manager for three seasons but possesses a wealth of experience from his playing days. He won the Scottish Cup with St Mirren as a youngster, the Champions League with Borrusia Dortmund and swept the board with Glasgow Celtic. He certainly has the credentials to be a successful manager but I believe that getting Leicester back into the Championship at the first time of asking is too much of an ask for him at this stage in his career.

Simon Grayson

Old Larry spent five years at Leicester City and is a huge favourite with the fans. He won the League Cup with the club in 1997 before joining Aston Villa and would be a popular choice amongst the supporters. He is currently the manager of Blackpool and guided them to the Championship by winning the League One play-off final last season. He took the club on their longest winning streak in their history and has won two manager of the month awards. But he also signed a two-and-a-half-year contract with the club in December, 2007. Leicester City will always be dear to his heart but I think he has too much to accomplish at Bloomfield Road to think about moving on just yet.

Paul Ince

Whereas some other big name former players wait around for a club to give them a chance, Paul Ince hasn't been afraid to get his hands dirty. The former Manchester United and Liverpool midfielder has been an overwhelming success as a manager and is seemingly destined for greatness. Some have even touted him to become the first black manager of England. He saved Macclesfield from the drop in his first season and has guided the MK Dons to League One as champions. But would he be willing to swap the stability of life at the Dons to take over at Leicester? I seriously doubt it.

Avram Grant

After coming so close to winning the Premiership and the Champions League with Chelsea, Portsmouth's former director of football, and friend of Milan Mandaric, has been shown the door at Stamford Bridge. Grant was never going to replace Jose Mourinho in the eyes of the Chelsea fans and even if he had completed the Double there was no guarantee that he was going to remain in the Chelsea hot-seat. So teaming up with his Mandaric will be like heaven for him! Some people criticised Grant's style of management but he got results. Whether he would relish the chance to manage in League One after rubbing shoulders with the likes of Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool is debatable but it wouldn't surprise me to see Milan and Grant working together again.

Other names that have been linked with the job include Peterborough's Darren Ferguson, Bournemouth's Kevin Bond and former Luton boss Mike Newell.

Off the field Leicester City are geared up for life in the Premiership. They have the stadium, they have the fans and in Milan they have the finances. But what they need is a class manager and some decent additions to the playing staff. Mandaric has been slammed in some quarters for not allowing his managers time to prove themselves at Leicester but if Leicester City are to bounce back from this disappointment then Mandaric is going to have to make the right appointment for once and let him get on with it. But who is the right man for the job?

Calling all Leicester City fans. Who do you want as your new boss and why? Do you blame Holloway for your demise or Mandaric? Do you believe Mandaric can appoint the right man? We'd love to hear from you.