With Leeds treading water above the relegation zone and his own managerial credibility teetering on the brink, Terry Venables will walk out at the Reebok Stadium this evening conscious that defeat to Bolton could signal the end of his turbulent four-month reign.Dominic Fifield reports.

Since beating Manchester United in September, Leeds have won only one of their last 11 Premiership matches, slipped out of the UEFA and League Cups and, should Bolton condemn them to a fifth consecutive league loss, they would hover just two points from the cut-off.

As rumours of player unrest continue, defeat would surely make the former England coach's position untenable. Although no formal discussions have taken place to discuss a severance settlement on Venables's £2 million-a-season, two-year contract, the 59-year-old is reportedly prepared to accept around £1 million to walk away.

His assistant Brian Kidd is likely to follow him through the door, with the English FA's acting technical director Les Reed earmarking the former Manchester United coach as a potential assistant for Sven-Goran Eriksson to replace Steve McClaren. "We would put him at the top of the list, but he has a job to do at Leeds and, in their current situation, they may not feel they want their number two away from the club," he said. A Kidd-Kevin Moran partnership was touted as a possible managerial team for the Republic of Ireland last week.

There was fighting talk from Venables yesterday. "We can get a result at Bolton," he insisted, "but that's just talk, talk, talk. Now it's about actually going out there and doing it. That's all I can say."

Leeds chairman Peter Ridsdale is said to already be compiling a short-list of potential replacements, with Leicester's Micky Adams and Paul Hart of Nottingham Forest the likeliest candidates. Both have experience under the tight financial controls that Leeds would enforce.

"Regardless of what other people may say, Leeds are in a relegation battle with us now," added Bolton's manager Sam Allardyce. "But I'm on the outside, so I can't say whether Leeds are in turmoil or not." If Bolton complete a rare league double, the unrest should be plain for all to see.

Meanwhile, Roy Keane will play in a reserve match for Manchester United on Thursday and, should he come through that game unscathed, is likely to be included in Alex Ferguson's squad for next Sunday's Premiership game at Blackburn's Ewood Park.

Guardian Service