Speaking on SEN Breakfast, AFL journalist Mike Sheahan is of the belief that Ben Rutten will take over from John Worsfold as Essendon's head coach next season.
Worsfold has been under immense pressure as of late despite being contracted at the Bombers for another season.
Essendon currently sit 7th on the AFL ladder and are under pressure to make finals this season after securing high-level recruits such as Dylan Shiel, Devon Smith, Adam Saad and Jake Stringer in recent times
“My guess, and it’s only a guess, that even before last week Woosha wasn’t going to get the job next year,” Sheahan said.
“If you ask me now how I think it will unfold, I think they’ll pass on Woosha and that Ben Rutten will be in the chair next year.
“They should be playing finals. The expectation at the start of the year was that they will play finals. I think their results have been terrible this year.”
Essendon great Tim Watson believes Worsfold has been harshly criticized, labelling injuries to key players as a key factor behind the drop in recent weeks.
“It’s the players that are injured. Five of their best six players have missed a significant amount of the season,” Watson said.
“Smith’s been out for most of the year, (Joe) Daniher’s been out for most of the year, (Tom) Bellchambers has been out for a long period of time.”
Essendon faces off against the Fremantle Dockers at Optus Stadium on Saturday night and need a win to seal a finals spot.
