Former Premier League managers Tim Sherwood and Tony Pulis have emerged as the early frontrunners to rescue Albion from relegation back to the third tier.

The pair are high on the list of targets being pieced together by the relegation-threatened Seagulls, along with Chris Hughton.

Sherwood enjoyed a good working relationship with Albion chief executive Paul Barber in their time at Spurs.

The ex-Blackburn Rovers midfielder may be more amenable to dropping into the Championship than in the summer, when he was being linked with other Premier League opportunities after losing his job at Tottenham.

Albion’s 1983 FA Cup finalist Chris Ramsey, part of Sherwood’s coaching team at White Hart Lane, told The Argus: “Tim is a quality coach and has very good leadership skills.

“He believes in playing young players, as you can see from the young players coming through at Spurs now.

"He likes to build a culture at the club, with everyone working together."

Welshman Pulis, the overwhelming choice of Argus readers in our website poll, indicated yesterday he would be willing to listen if Albion want him.

The Dorset-based Premier League saviour of arch-rivals Crystal Palace last season would be an expensive option but a source close to Pulis has revealed he is not ruling out another opportunity to stabilise and develop a Championship club into a top flight team, a feat he achieved in his second stint at Stoke.

Sherwood and Pulis both have strong opinions about how clubs should be run. That will not necessarily deter chairman Tony Bloom, who has flown back from Australia to take charge of the selection process, because of the gravity of Albion's situation at the wrong end of the table.

Bloom plumped for more reserved characters in Oscar Garcia and Sami Hyypia after an acrimonious split with the spikey Gus Poyet.

Former Newcastle and Norwich boss Hughton, understood to be close to landing the post when Hyypia was appointed in June, is also likely to be a leading candidate following the Finn's resignation on Monday.

Albion have reportedly approached regular League One promotion contenders MK Dons for permission to speak to 34-year-old Liverpudlian Karl Robinson, in spite of his lack of Championship experience.

Former Brentford boss Uwe Rosler, another touted contender, has been tainted by Wigan's Championship struggle this season, which cost the German his job.

Ruthless Republic of Ireland No. 2 Roy Keane, a long-odds outsider with bookmakers, is a big admirer of Albion. The ex-Sunderland and Ipswich chief influenced the loan captures of Joe Bennett and Gary Gardner during his spell as assistant to Paul Lambert at Aston Villa.

Spanish defender Inigo Calderon, who joined Albion five years ago when they were near the bottom of League One, said: "We are victims of our own success, because we have been used to doing well in the last three years.

"Now we are in the bottom three, not doing so well, and there has to be a change."