Exclusive Column
Mark Goldbridge: Erik ten Hag is under pressure but who would be foolish enough to want the Manchester United job?
In an exclusive column for marvelbet369.com, Mark Goldbridge assesses Erik ten Hag's future and considers who could replace him in the Old Trafford dugout if he is axed...
There’s no doubt Erik ten Hag is under pressure and I think some Manchester United fans would make that change - my question is always, who comes in?
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It’s a bit like throwing your toys out the pram when you’re angry, but where are your other toys?
I think with regards to options out there, if you’re hypothetically going to sack a manager then you hypothetically should have an alternative, and I don't see enough good ones out there at the moment.
Unai Emery, I think he would be a fool to take the Manchester United job.
At Aston Villa he’s got a structure around him and he’s got players who play for him - that’s two things straight away you haven’t got at Manchester United, which makes your job hard.
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You only have to look at Jose Mourinho, one of the greatest managers there has ever been, and he couldn’t get control of that football club.
The only reason Emery would take that job is if he’s absolutely obsessed with a big club like Manchester United and trying to rebuild it. He would be a great choice, but for me it’s a pie in the sky choice at the moment.
Another option would be Zinedine Zidane - a three-times Champions League winner with Real Madrid, but he hasn’t had a job since then.
This tends to be the hipster Manchester United fan choice - get rid of Ten Hag and bring Zidane in - the only problem is he doesn't speak English, he’s got no intention of learning it and he’s got no intention of managing in England.
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But even if he did, I don't think he’d have any intention of managing Manchester United, for the simple reason - look at his history.
He had a Real Madrid side that was elite and they won the Champions League three years in a row. There is no pedigree of Zidane looking to take on a club in trouble and in need of a massive rebuild and wanting that project.
I think Zidane is somebody who will drop into the France national team job at some point, maybe the Juventus job, maybe even the Bayern Munich job. A bit like Pep Guardiola, I don’t think he wants a project that’s difficult, and why should he? He’s won three Champions Leagues in a row. I don’t think it’s viable.
Another option is Graham Potter. He’s been linked quite a lot over the last few weeks to having a good relationship with INEOS and therefore would Manchester United look to bring him in? He’s free, he’s available, and I think wherever he is in the world he would swim, run and jog to Manchester to take that job.
The problem that Potter would have is, I liked him appointed to Chelsea and I thought he was a good manager at Brighton, but it’s the damage that’s done to his reputation.
You can’t walk into a club and have half the fans not want you, and that would be the case for him at Manchester United which makes it very difficult from day one. He would not be a popular choice.
Also, you’ve got to look at Chelsea and some of the stories coming out of there that the players didn’t rate him - that’s only going to be the same at Manchester United. It looks like he might be a bit of a puppet manager where the CEO and director of football are running things and he’s just the coach.
For me, it’s just fraught with risk and I could see it going the same way as Chelsea, unfortunately.
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I think a couple of years ago another good option would have been Julian Nagelsmann. He did fantastic at RB Leipzig and obviously at Bayern Munich he struggled with the big club and the big players - that’s a big red flag when you’re dealing with Manchester United because every manager has struggled with that.
He’s obviously in charge of Germany at the moment and will be through to the Euros. However, I think United would be foolish to get rid of Ten Hag before the summer anyway, so maybe the stars could align there.
But I think with Nagelsmann it’s just another indicator that, yeah there’s another manager who could potentially do the job, but he’s not an outstanding candidate at the moment and that’s the problem Manchester United face, it would be another big risk.
Finally, one of the most popularist choices would be Roberto De Zerbi at Brighton who I think, a little bit like Emery, would maybe be a bit of a fool to take the job… but I think he would.
It’s a bit like Moises Caicedo leaving Brighton to join Chelsea - on paper right now it’s not a great deal for your career because Brighton are doing better, but it’s Chelsea, and I think for De Zerbi it’s Manchester United.
The thing is, it could just be another Potter to Chelsea, you just don't know until it happens.
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Also at Brighton you’ve got an amazing infrastructure and amazing recruitment, and at Manchester United you just don't have that.
And I think the respect thing’s a problem when it comes to players and these managers who are up-and-coming.
Our players didn’t even know who Ralf Rangnick was, and this is a guy who invented a certain style of football the likes of Jurgen Klopp and many other managers have utilised, but Manchester United players were like, ‘Who’s this? We don’t respect him’.
I think De Zerbi might take it, but my biggest concern with this would be the amount of money it might take for United to get him. Potter cost tens of millions for Chelsea, United would have to pay tens of millions to sack Ten Hag and then tens of millions to get De Zerbi - we don't have that sort of money.
So it looks like another non-starter and it’s another candidate who doesn’t jump out of you for all the right reasons.
Final verdict - Sack or keep?
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Looking at all those candidates, if I had a choice now whether to sack Ten Hag and replace him with some of those candidates, would I do it? The honest answer is a firm, ‘No’.
There is a much needed and overdue review going on at Manchester United and I think Ten Hag has to be part of that so he can understand the problems and mistakes he has made as well.
I’d be looking at this in the summer and if I was going to replace Ten Hag I would make sure I had a candidate that I was confident could come in and make big strides very quickly.
I don't think any of those managers fit that bill.
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The funny thing is if you could accumulate them all together they’ve all got little bits that could produce the manger we need, but there are so many red flags there, so I would be sticking with what we’ve got or looking at other candidates.
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