Defiant Mick McCarthy this afternoon came out fighting as rumours ran riot that he is about to be sacked, declaring: “I wouldn’t have done anything different”.

Despite ever-mounting pressure, the Wolves boss was relaxed, calm and composed in a press conference.

But the club’s own sponsor Sportingbet.com this afternoon made McCarthy 1-2 favourite to be the next manager to be sacked.

At a dramatic 1pm press conference, McCarthy said: “The biggest reason as to how I cope is that I don’t listen to the backdrop of what fans are saying.

“I do not go around in a glass cabinet – I am fully aware of what is going on.

“If you listen to it, you would go off your head anyway. I just make sure I get on with it with Terry Connor [assistant manager], Pat Mountain [goalkeeping coach] and Steve Weaver [development coach] and we try to find a result.

“It is a results business but performances have been very good. We have played very well in recent weeks and I cannot question the perfomances at all. I would not have done anything differently against Chelsea and Tottenham and I could not have done anything to make us any better.”

He said he had not watched Match of the Day on Saturday night after Wolves were defeated 3-2 by Aston Villa.

He had been named by bookies as 8-1 to be the next manager to get the sack up until earlier today amid talk that betting on the Molineux chief had been suspended.

But Sportingbet.com posted on social networking site Twitter today: “Our ‘sack race’ market has taken plenty of twists & turns over the past week.

“McCarthy is our new 1-2 favourite from Steve Kean 9-2, Owen Coyle 8-1, Andre Villas-Boas 10-1 and Alex McLeish 10-1.”

Internet message boards and Twitter were swamped with rumours McCarthy had been dismissed following Saturday’s 3-2 home defeat to Villa.

The result stretched Wolves’ run to two wins in 20 games and plunged the team into the relegation zone for the first time this season.

But senior sources at Molineux today denied the speculation, saying they are keen to sign another player before the transfer window shuts in nine days’ time.

Chief executive Jez Moxey said: “We’re working hard as we always do to see if we can bring in a third signing.”

See also:

• Wolves insist Mick McCarthy is in charge despite rumours
• Wolves 2 Aston Villa 3 – Match analysis