Stoke City’s hierarchy will meet on Monday to accelerate the process of appointing a new manager in the wake of Mark Hughes’s dismissal, with Gary Rowett emerging as a leading candidate on the Premier League club’s shortlist along with Martin O’Neill.

Although Stoke have not put any timescale on their search for a new manager, they are keen to bring in a successor to Hughes as soon as possible and have already received plenty of interest in the post. Stoke would have preferred to wait until the summer to be in this situation, given the managerial landscape is likely to look much different then, yet Hughes’s position was viewed as untenable after the FA Cup defeat against Coventry City on Saturday.

It is understood that strong consideration had been given to dismissing Hughes regardless of the Coventry result – which also means that Stoke are not starting from scratch when it comes to identifying the new manager. Peter Coates, the chairman, John Coates, the vice-chairman, and Tony Scholes, the chief executive, will be the central figures when it comes to deciding where to turn next.

Mark Hughes pays price for failure to organise and motivate Stoke players | Paul MacInnes Read more

As things stand, Rowett and O’Neill are the frontrunners. Rowett, who has led Derby County to second in the Championship and also impressed as Birmingham City manager before he was harshly sacked, has a burgeoning reputation. Stoke’s only reservations about Rowett are likely to surround the fact that the 43-year-old has never managed in the Premier League before, although that in itself may not be such a significant barrier. There is, however, the question of how difficult it would be to prise him from Derby.

Although O’Neill is in charge of the Republic of Ireland, he has yet to sign a new contract and could view Stoke as an ideal opportunity to return to club management at the highest level. The 65-year-old has plenty of Premier League experience and is respected by senior figures at the club.

The list of alternative contenders appears limited. Ronald Koeman would have been of interest to Stoke but is not seen as a viable option because he is expected to take charge of Holland. Graham Potter, who has enjoyed considerable success in Sweden with Ostersunds FK and also played for Stoke in the 1990s, has been linked with the vacancy, but a move for the 42-year-old seems likely to be viewed as too big a gamble at this stage, especially with the club’s Premier League future hanging in the balance.

Stoke, who are 18th in the table, visit Manchester United in their next Premier League game and hope to have a manager in place for that fixture at Old Trafford. The run of games afterwards, against Huddersfield Town and Watford at home, Bournemouth away and then Brighton & Hove Albion at home, is seen as critical to their survival prospects.