Former Arsenal captain Patrick Vieira has seen his odds slashed on becoming the next Newcastle United Head Coach in the last 24 hours. The French World Cup winner, who is currently Manchester City's Elite Development Squad coach, has seen his odds come in from 30/1 to 7/2 this afternoon. And despite being earmarked as a potential replacement for Manuel Pellegrini it looks like his future could lay away from Manchester. It seems the flood of bets has come about after it was revealed that the former France international's contract with The Citizens is set to expire in a few weeks. He has built up quite a reputation while working with the youth at The Etihad so there are likely to be a whole host of clubs after his signature. Now, it has to be said a slashing of odds like this is due to a number of people putting money on a man to become the new manager of a club. It generally means nothing. But then again, a lot people have put their money on the line in a relatively short space of time for a reason so there might be something in this. Vieira's attributes as a gaffer seem to be far from those he displayed during his playing career, as former Gunners teammate Martin Keown explains: "Patrick wants to be a manager. He is intelligent, well-balanced and has a burning desire to win. He was a ferocious competitor on the pitch but off it he is a class act." Steve McClaren is still the bookies' favourite for The Magpies' job with Vieira coming into second favourite. Current Head Coach John Carver, who wanted a definitive answer on his future by this past Wednesday before he went on holiday, has seen his odds drift quite severely. United are reported to want their new Head Coach in place by the end of next week. Watch this space.