New ‘leading candidate’ for Man Utd job emerges after manager hints at move

Brentford boss Thomas Frank has reportedly become a top candidate to join Manchester United, should the Old Trafford hierarchy sack Erik ten Hag.

On October 7, Man Utd put Frank on their shortlist of potential replacements for Ten Hag, who is under pressure following his side’s disappointing start to the campaign. At that stage, Thomas Tuchel was the favourite to become Man Utd’s new boss, but he has since agreed to become England manager in January.

According to the Daily Mail, Frank is no longer just an option Man Utd are considering, he is a ‘leading candidate’ to succeed from Ten Hag.

It comes after Frank revealed on Thursday that he is ‘open’ to a Brentford exit and cannot guarantee that he will stay with the west London club for the long run.

The 51-year-old is poised to rival Newcastle United’s Eddie Howe and free agent Graham Potter for the Old Trafford hot seat.

Man Utd part-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe is known to be keen on landing an English manager next, and Howe and Potter have been identified as the ‘best of British’ coaches available.

But Ratcliffe allowed CEO Omar Berrada and sporting director Dan Ashworth to make the final decision to keep Ten Hag recently, and they are likely to enter talks with Frank.

It has also been claimed that Zinedine Zidane has held discussions with Man Utd director and French compatriot Jean-Claude Blanc about taking charge of the Red Devils.

Zidane would clearly be a dream appointment for Man Utd, but he holds reservations about managing in England for the first time.

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Ten Hag exit talk refuses to go away

On October 8, Man Utd chiefs met in London to discuss several aspects of the club, including Ten Hag’s future.

Following that meeting, Berrada and Ashworth opted to stick with the Dutchman. However, it has been widely reported that Ten Hag will be axed if Man Utd suffer disappointing results in their upcoming games against Brentford, Fenerbahce and West Ham United.

Intriguingly, Frank’s Brentford and Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce could therefore play a key role in what happens to Ten Hag.

Frank has done a fantastic job since joining the Bees in October 2018, helping them gain promotion to the Premier League for the very first time and even finish as high as ninth place in the 2022-23 season.

The Dane has gained plenty of admirers as he has overseen Brentford’s transformation on a relatively small budget and has also gotten the best out of forwards such as Ivan Toney and Bryan Mbeumo.

Should Frank become the new Man Utd manager, then the club’s supporters will be hoping he can get attackers such as Marcus Rashford and Joshua Zirkzee to shine.

Although, some sections of the Man Utd fanbase may want a bigger name to take over, as Frank has never managed a truly elite club before.

READ MORE: Ranking every player Erik ten Hag has signed for Man Utd from worst to best

Man Utd news: Zola verdict, double contract update

Meanwhile, former Chelsea star Gianfranco Zola has been ‘dazzled’ by new Napoli midfielder Scott McTominay following his summer move away from Man Utd.

“I’m very surprised. I could not believe that Manchester United released him, to be honest,” Zola said.

“I don’t really know what’s the reason but obviously for Napoli it’s been a great deal.

“I think everybody loves him so far, he’s scored goals, performed very well, he left me a little bit dazzled, to be honest, I didn’t expect that. Obviously it’s a big thing for Italian football, he’s doing very well.”

While Man Utd allowed McTominay to go earlier this year, that will not be happening with rising stars Kobbie Mainoo and Amad Diallo.

TEAMtalk revealed on Thursday that the duo are both very keen to extend their contracts with Man Utd as they see their long-term futures as being at Old Trafford.

The Man Utd board are ready to offer Mainoo and Amad bumper new deals to reward them for their transformations into important first-team players.

Central midfielder Mainoo will be tied down first, with winger Amad set to follow.

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