Manchester United

Manchester United

Premier League • England

Next Man Utd manager: Ten Hag sack coming with Ratcliffe ‘confident’ of landing ‘overwhelming choice’ to take job

Erik ten Hag could be set to be replaced as Man Utd boss by Sir Jim Ratcliffe

Erik ten Hag could be set to be replaced as Man Utd boss by Sir Jim Ratcliffe

A bold new report claims Manchester United are ‘increasingly confident’ of landing their No 1 choice in Gareth Souhtgate to become their new manager and with the axe certain to fall on Erik ten Hag at the end of the season.

The Red Devils showed real promise under the Dutchman in his first season at the helm as United finished third in the Premier League, won the Carabao Cup and also reached the FA Cup final. However, little has gone right for either Ten Hag and Manchester United this season, with their season dogged by inconsistencies and fluctuating fortunes.

And while the club looked well placed to reach the FA Cup final once again, having overcome Liverpool in a quarter-final classic and then being paired with Championship side Coventry in the last four, it is their form in the Premier League, together with their Champions League embarrassment earlier in the campaign, for which the Dutchman is being most strongly measured against.

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Indeed, the Red Devils have already lost 11 times in 28 games this season, one more than last season already and just one fewer than the difficult season that saw Ole Gunnar Solskjaer replaced and Ralf Rangnick brought in as a less-than-successful interim replacement.

As a result, speculation over Ten Hag’s future has swirled for a number of months, and moreso following the purchase into 27.7% of the club by British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe.

Indeed, the likes of Julian Nagelsmann, Roberto De Zerbi and Thomas Frank have all been mentioned as possible successors to Ten Hag, with our exclusive report also detailing how many at Old Trafford feel time is running out on the Dutchman’s reign.

Man Utd ‘increasingly confident of landing Gareth Southgate as new manager’

However, according to a strong new report in the Daily Star, Ratcliffe, together with incoming new sporting director Dan Ashworth, now have a new ‘overwhelming favourite’ to step into the hotseat in the form of England coach Southgate.

The 53-year-old’s deal with the FA is due to expire at the end of this year and talks over a possible extension have been shelved until after the country’s European Championship campaign.

That tournament is due to get underway in Germany on Friday June 14 and England, alongside France, are the joint favourites to win.

However, it’s claimed Ratcliffe believes now wants Southgate drafted in as a replacement for Ten Hag once England’s interest in the tournament comes to an end.

The report states that, having ‘canvassed senior INEOS directors, officials and United legends’ that a move to make Southgate their new manager would tick plenty of boxes.

It’s felt his tactical acumen, as well as his ability to handle and get the best out of big-name stars, has earned him a lot of admirers within senior officials at Old Trafford, especially with Ashworth who knows him well from his own spell working at the FA.

It’s reported that a move to make him manager will cost Ratcliffe £800,000 in compensation with his contract running until December 31; not that high in the circumstances and particularly given what the Red Devils would need to fork out if they were to move for either De Zerbi or Frank, who are both under long deals at Brighton and Brentford, respectively.

And they state that Ratcliffe now ‘confident’ of landing his ‘overwhelming choice’ in Southgate to take the job, believing he could even have an answer soon from the England coach.

Southgate insists focus is on England

Southgate, for his part, has been keen to play down speculation over his future, insisting just last week that his entire focus remains on delivering England’s first major tournament win since the 1966 World Cup.

“I have to deliver in the job I’m in, so there’s no point in me thinking any further ahead than that,” Southgate said when questioned about Manchester United links recently.

“My focus is delivering the best possible European Championship for England. Since I came to St George’s, our target has been being in the final four of things, with the ultimate aim of winning.

“If you look at the trajectory of a team, we’re at that point where we’ve done a lot of the climb and the enjoyable bit and we’re at that last bit, really, of winning and getting over the line.

“We’ve shown the consistency in the world ranking for the last five years, so there’s consistency of performances. We have to translate that with the next step now.

“That’s the challenge I have to accept as well and I’m really comfortable with that. There’s no point in speculating about what might happen after the summer.”

Southgate added: “I think we would have to sit and think about that at the end of the tournament. I’m happy to talk about it briefly now, but I’m not going to talk about for the whole summer, what’s next.

“We’ve consciously shelved any discussions internally about what might be next, because I think if we had sat and signed a new contract and done that before the tournament, everybody would have said: ‘Well, you did this with (Fabio) Capello and you should be proving yourself before you sign.’

“So, look, I’m completely relaxed about that and I have no idea where we’ll be in the middle of July, other than I hope it’s Trafalgar Square and let’s get the party on!”

Ten Hag Man Utd sack: The truths

TEAMtalk can also confirm that, despite speculation over Ten Hag’s future, the Dutchman still does hold plenty of support among the United hierarchy and that his sack this summer is far from guaranteed.

Officials are said to be impressed with the determination United showed on Sunday in, not once but twice, digging their way back from the brink against Liverpool to eventually win through and end Jurgen Klopp’s quadruple dreams in his final season in charge.

Indeed, it’s also widely accepted among those in charge at United that success in the FA Cup – a possible final showdown against Manchester City looks possible again – as well as qualification for the Champions League next season – and fifth could well secure that in an expanded format next season – could yet spare Ten Hag from the axe, with his removal as manager seen as very tricky if both objectives are achieved.

As a result, any decision on his future – and irrespective of claims that Southgate is now the club’s first choice as a potential successor – will be put on hold until after the current season draws to a close.

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