Manchester United has been severely disappointing since the beginning of the season. He won only three of nine matches, after six rounds Premier League has only 7 points and is only 13th in the table. This may cause an earthquake in the club, including the coach's job.
Manchester United with their backs to the wall. These matches will decide the fate of Erik ten Hag
With each subsequent failure, Erik ten Hag's ratings are getting worse. After the last defeat against Tottenham (0:3), he argued that he felt supported by the club's authorities. – I don't think about it – this is how he replied to the question about being fired. – We are on the same side of the barricade, both owners, staff and players. So I have no such concerns, he added. Still, he can't sleep soundly.
According to the findings of Italian journalist Nicolo Schira, Manchester United has selected potential successors to the Dutchman, who already has a small margin of error. “Thomas Tuchel and Gareth Southgate are among Manchester United's candidates to replace Erik ten Hag if the Dutch manager loses another matches with Porto and Aston Villa,” we read on website X.
Thomas Tuchel and Gareth Southgate are candidates for Erik ten Hag's successors
Both coaches are well known to football fans. Tuchel led Bayern Munich until the end of last season, although his tenure of just over a year turned out to be a failure – although he “brought” the German championship in the 2022/23 competition, it was the only trophy he won. In the past, he worked with greater success at Chelsea (winning the Champions League) or PSG (six domestic titles and the Champions League final).
Southgate, on the other hand, has been in charge of the England national team for the last eight years, taking him to the European Championship final twice and once to the final semi-final world championship. If he took over Manchester United, it would be a return to club football after 15 years. Between June 2006 and October 2009, he managed Middlesbrough without major success (151 matches, average points of 1.21, and after the 2008/09 season, relegation to the Championship).
If a German or an Englishman became the coach of the Old Trafford giant, they would face a real challenge to lift him from an increasingly deeper hole. Especially since disastrous sports results may have serious financial consequences and even lead to the club being taken under control.
For now, everyone at Manchester United remains relatively calm and waits for the matches against Porto in the Europa League and Aston Villa in the Premier League. The first one will take place on October 3, the second one three days later.