Manchester United decided to stick with Erik ten Hag in the summer but three defeats in seven games to start the season – including a genuinely embarrassing rout by Tottenham at Old Trafford – has brought all the noise back to the surprise of literally nobody outside the United brains trust. The odd win or plucky goalless draw here and there isn’t going to cut it when the next crushing disappointment always seems to be just around the corner.
As the Ten Hag sack chat gathers pace, so to does the talk of who might replace him. Here are the current favourites for the job, based on the latest odds from Oddschecker.
9=) Simone Inzaghi
His agent has done great work getting his name in all manner of reports about the United job, with one email even dropping into our overflowing inbox declaring him the favourite. To be clear, he is not and never has been that, but he has now snuck into the top 10 at the expense of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Zinedine Zidane.
9=) Roberto De Zerbi
Now at Marseille but will remain high on any list of possible managers for any big Premier League club because he ‘knows the league’, doesn’t he? He also knows how to drop five places in a year, which is the kind of experience that could be vital for Manchester United.
8) Max Allegri
The decorated former Juventus boss is the man Sir Alex Ferguson has told Man United they must appoint, as long as you just completely ignore that he didn’t in fact do that at all.
7) Thomas Frank
Might have made slightly more sense if Brentford hadn’t spent much of last season flailing about on the fringes of the relegation battle. Though he does already know how to bring out the worst in Man United, which appears to be a prerequisite for the job.
Can we be Frank? Manchester United might be replacing Ten Hag with a worse fit and bigger gamble
5=) Graham Potter
Arf! Just imagine if United did sack Ten Hag and they replaced him with the man who crashed and burned so spectacularly at Chelsea. Potter has plenty of mitigation because Chelsea are Chelsea, but the ex-Brighton manager surely needs to re-establish his credentials for the top jobs elsewhere before being considered by the biggest clubs again.
And just ponder the reaction among the egos in the United dressing room. Some of these lads refused to listen to Ralf Rangnick having had to Google the German when he was appointed. The prospect of this squad tuning in to Potter seems… remote.
But it’s an appointment that would certainly chime with Dan Ashworth. For what it’s worth, Potter is also currently to be found at the head of the betting for the Spurs job – one that may be available sooner than expected given not every team plays against Spurs the way United did.
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5=) Kieran McKenna
His agent played a blinder as reported interest from Manchester United led to a four-year contract at Ipswich that makes him one of the best-paid managers in the Premier League. Any kind of encouraging season – or even half-season – at Ipswich could keep him very much in contention as Ten Hag flails around flailingly.
4) Michael Carrick
Knows the club to an almost pathological degree. Has done the job before, a bit. Great football brain. Would probably want to be a bit higher than ninth in the Championship with Middlesbrough, though, if he really wanted to push his case.
F365 DECIDES: Who do you think Man Utd should appoint as their next manager? 🗳️ Vote here.
3) Gareth Southgate
We’re really not sure United fans would tolerate this based on their reaction to links during the summer, but my word would the press boys be thrilled.
Any indication this might really be a goer will have the think-pieces flowing about just how much Southgate deserves such a chance after nearly winning some things with England. For maximum banter, he would need to make his first move as United manager the signing of Jordan Henderson.
And Man United might have to move a bit quicker than previously thought, because a post-takeover Everton are reportedly keen. It would not do for United to lose out on their apparent top choice to Everton, come on.
2) Ruud van Nistelrooy
Back in situ at Manchester United and surely in the right place for at least a caretaker manager stint when Ten Hag is eventually put out of his misery sometime around the November international break.
It helps that he is the ‘cool’ anti-Ten Hag. Just put your fingers in your ears whenever anyone points out that United’s finishing is the biggest single problem among the cavalcade of current problems, and that giving the bloke in charge of that any additional power might not necessarily therefore be a great idea.
1) Thomas Tuchel
His availability inevitably puts him near the top of the list for any top job that may become available but his lack of warmth – and the fact that he has managed four clubs in a decade – could work against him as the Red Devils look for a long-term manager who can bring the oomph back to United.
Has to take his own hefty share of the blame for Bayern’s potless 2023/24 season, even if finishing third in a one-horse race is obviously mainly down to the Harry Kane Curse. but still represents a manager of elite calibre who is currently available. But reports in the summer suggested he talked himself out of the job after outlining plans as outlandish as “fixing problems” and “getting the best out of Jadon Sancho” so there may be bridges to be built on both sides for this to happen.
That no longer appears to be an obstacle, though, given the way the price has been tumbling in recent days. And at least the Sancho problem has resolved itself.
MORE: Man Utd | Erik Ten Hag | Gareth Southgate
