Michael Laudrup’s firing by Swansea City this week makes it seven managers who have lost their job in the Barclays Premier League this season.

In Laudrup’s case, it does seem a bit harsh, coming a year after he guided Swansea to victory in the Capital One Cup final last February over Nahki Wells’s former team, Bradford City, the first major trophy in the club’s history. But that is the nature of the beast in professional football and most managers, I’m sure, understand that if you don’t get results you’re going to be in big trouble.

If you look at the seven managers that are gone, I think that’s what happened to most of them is a lack of results. That is what you are judged by and it is unfortunate that they don’t give them enough time. But when you are paying the bucks, you call the shots.

It is a shame when it happens because you don’t want to see anybody out of a job, but I’m sure Laudrup will bounce back. His teams play attractive football and wherever he goes he will be OK. It is a shame because he seemed a very likeable person, was a good player and had results where he had been before. To come to Swansea and win the first trophy in their history in English football and then be kicked up the pants like that is not nice.

Swansea have won only once in their past ten league games and although they are in twelfth place, there is just two points separating them from the relegation zone after last weekend’s loss to West Ham United. Swansea have a caretaker manager in place for today’s derby match with Cardiff City and, although some pundits have questioned the timing of the sacking, if professional footballers can’t get up for a derby game, they don’t belong out there.

You are playing against your neighbours and you want the bragging rights, and that alone should give you the fire to want to do well. Let’s hope they are able to turn it around because they do play good football, Swansea.

The West Ham loss proved to be the final straw for Laudrup, but the win for West Ham came at a price because Andy Carroll, who laid on both goals for Kevin Nolan with back-post headers, was sent off for swinging his arm at the Swansea defender Chico Flores after a challenge from Flores.

I thought the red card was unfortunate but players have to use their heads a bit more. The guy was all over him and he did play act after Carroll swung his arm and he should get an Oscar for it. He does that every time I watch him play on television. I think the FA need to call him in and tell him that making noise to try to get a fellow professional sent off is not right.

West Ham lost their initial appeal against Carroll’s red card and they subsequently lost their case when they appeared in front of an independent abritration tribunal yesterday, which means that Carroll will miss today’s away match against Aston Villa and vital home matches with Norwich City and Southampton.

The way West Ham play, they need him; nobody else can do what he does. Carlton Cole is a big fella but he doesn’t have the attributes that Carroll has and I hoped they would win their appeal.

When you get sent off, you have to shoulder some of the responsibility and I hope Andy uses a bit more commonsense in the future. You are a target and people are going to battle with you and you just have to keep your cool.

I don’t know if the referee had a clear vision of the incident, but I don’t think it warranted a red card, probably a yellow but not a red.

The Liverpool manager, Brendon Rodgers, this week ruled his team out of the title race, but that may just be a ploy to get into other managers’ heads before today’s crucial clash with the leaders, Arsenal. As far as I’m concerned, the race is not over just yet and with them eight points behind the leaders, anything can happen in the next 14 games.

I’m sure, while he may have said that to the press, he will be telling his players that they need to go out and give the best performance they can to get a result against Arsenal. It is a big game for both clubs after Manchester City’s loss at home to Chelsea on Monday.

Editor’s note: At 6ft 4in, Andy Carroll is a big man. Wildly swinging his arm in frustration and catching his opponent in the face made that as clear cut a red card as there could be.