Top 3 Candidates To Replace Erik Ten Hag

Nobody thought this article would be written this season, but that’s the nature of football. Erik ten Hag, flying after an encouraging last season had basically been handed the keys to the club, finds himself in a precarious position all of a sudden. Manchester United’s next manager discussions are already underway, a thought that wasn’t remotely realistic at the start of the season.

Unfortunately, after eight losses from 15 games, and bad performances in about 13 of those, Ten Hag looks like the next in a line of managers who have failed to revive this sleeping giant.

With the Dutchman’s future on thin ice, here are the top three candidates to be Manchester United’s next manager-

Ruben Amorim

Sporting Lisbon’s Ruben Amorim has, for a long time, looked like a sure bet to take the next step to a European elite in his career. His thrilling attacking football, trust in youth, and Champions League pedigree have made him one of the favourites every time an elite job opening comes up.

Perhaps most importantly for United, Amorim has a reputation for making players better. The likes of Pedro Porro, Nuno Mendes, Matheus Nunes, and Joao Palhinha are just some of the names who played their best football under Amorim at Sporting before flourishing elsewhere.

Furthermore, he has history of reviving a sleeping giant. He was the mastermind behind Sporting’s first league title in 19 years while losing only once the entire season in 2020/21.

United fans will have deja vu because these are also some of the qualities that were used to describe Erik ten Hag at Ajax before he had joined United.

However, the reality remains that the current version of Ten Hag is unrecognisable from the one who thrilled Europe with his energetic young squad. Amorim is the next big thing.

Zinedine Zidane

If United don’t want to get burned by going after the next big thing again, they can try fishing for the biggest thing in the pool.

Zidane is currently unemployed following a trophy-laden spell with Real Madrid when Los Blancos made Champions League their personal playground.

Many managers have cited player management issues as one of their biggest obstacles at succeeding at United. For Zidane, that’s his biggest strength. There is no dressing room and board tougher to navigate and demanding than Real Madrid. The way he brought them together during his spell in Spain to get the best out of everyone silenced everyone who doubted him.

Even his tactical acumen came to the fore…