Both Southampton and Norwich City changed managers midway through their Championship campaigns.

In the summer, both clubs hired new head coaches, however Will Still lasted only 16 games at St. Mary’s and Liam Manning only 17 at Carrow Road.

However, poor starts to the campaign and ambitions to compete for promotion led to them both losing their roles in November, with Tonda Eckert and Philippe Clement taking their places.

They are now both in contention for a play-off spot, with the Saints being sixth in the table with only six games remaining.

Norwich have climbed to ninth place, but they are six points behind Hampshire, have only five games left, and appear to have run out of time this season. However, the prospects for next season are extremely positive, with Norwich becoming one of the division’s top form clubs since changing managers.

There is little doubt that both managers have had a significant impact on their respective teams, and it is difficult for fans not to contemplate what could have been if they had been in charge when the season began.

Norwich and Southampton make cheeky joke at the EFL manager shortlist.

As the season comes to a close, the EFL has published the shortlist for Championship Manager of the Year.

Frank Lampard, Alex Neil, Sergej Jakirovic, and Kim Hellberg have all been nominated, and they manage four of the top five teams in the table.

Despite their efforts to help Norwich and Southampton return to the top half of the second division table, Clement and Eckert were both barred from competing.

The two clubs have responded with clever comments on social media, with the Canaries sharing a picture of their head coach with a thinking face emoji.

Meanwhile, Southampton uploaded an image of their head coach with the comment, “Just don’t think they understand.”

While the managers have not responded, both sets of supporters will believe that their guy has been overlooked for the shortlist of prospective winners.

Lampard is on the verge of automatic promotion at Coventry City, which has earned him the nomination.

Neil, Jakirovic, and Hellberg have also led promotion campaigns with Millwall, Hull City, and Middlesbrough, respectively, but they have all lost ground to second-place Ipswich Town in recent weeks in the race for a top-two finish.

Jakirovic’s nomination may be the most justified given that he has been operating under a transfer embargo and H

ull were widely expected to face another battle against relegation, despite the Tigers dramatically outperforming expectations to stake their claim for a surprise Premier League return.

The EFL awards will be presented on April 19, along with the Championship Player of the Year award.

Philippe Clement and Tonda Eckert face tight competition for manager of the year.

Many managers have done excellent work this year, and the four names on the shortlist for the award are all deserving of recognition.

Eckert and Clement took over in November and have done an excellent job getting their clubs to where they are now.

But Southampton were also anticipated to be in the running for a top two spot when the season began, and they have merely returned to their natural position under Eckert.

But nobody expected Hull, Middlesbrough, or Millwall to be where they are today in August, so it’s no surprise that they’ve been nominated, and it’s also impossible to keep Lampard out of the award when Coventry is on the verge of winning the league.