Former Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur star favourite for vacant EFL manager post

Former Chelsea midfielder Gus Poyet is looking to make his return to football management - and he has recently been made the favourite to assume the vacant managerial post at Plymouth Argyle, following Steven Schumacher's move to fellow Championship outfit Stoke City on December 19.

Poyet has managed in England before - he coached Brighton and Hove Albion from 2009 to 2013, before managing Sunderland from 2014 to 2015. Since then, the Uruguayan has managed teams such as AEK Athens, Shanghai Shenhua and the Greek national team. This aside, should he take the vacant job at Plymouth, it would be his first foray into English football for over eight years.

Poyet played for Chelsea from 1997 to 2001 - he signed from Real Zaragoza, before departing to join London rivals Tottenham Hotspur. During his time at Stamford Bridge, Poyet made 105 Premier League appearances for the Blues, scoring 36 goals along the way.

Who else is in the running for the Plymouth Argyle job?

While Poyet appears to be the overwhelming favourite to assume the vacant Pilgrims hotseat, he is not the only head coach who has been linked with the job. Chesterfield boss Paul Cook is among those who have been mentioned - however, it seems unlikely that he will leave the Spirites at this stage of the season, given the likelihood that they will be promoted under his stewardship.

Everton legend Leighton Baines is also thought to be in the running for the vacant Plymouth job. He has yet to take on a senior team management role - as such, appointing him would be a risk. As well as Baines, coaches such as John Eustace, Luke Williams, Neil Warnock, Dean Holden, Scott Parker and Nathan Jones have also been linked with a move to the Pilgrims following Schumacher's departure.