England Boss Gareth Southgate is set to become the new manager of surprising Premier League club
Manchester United is “assessing” three options to replace Erik ten Hag at Old Trafford, and one of them is Gareth Southgate.
After ten Hag’s difficult season at Manchester United, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the club’s new minority owner, is considering managers to take over for the Dutchman come summertime.
Options are “being explored to gauge credentials and availability of possible replacements,” according to ESPN.
Three managers—Southgate, Roberto De Zerbi of Brighton, and Thomas Frank of Brentford—are being “assessed” by Ratcliffe and Ineos.
“Everyone is looking at De Zerbi,” a source told ESPN, alluding to reports of interest from teams including Chelsea, Barcelona, and Liverpool.
Although he “has earned him admirers at Old Trafford,” Frank is probably the one being overlooked because of his “success at building a high-energy team at Brentford while embracing the London club’s data-led approach to recruitment.”
Despite being a “outsider” for the job and not playing club football since being fired by Middlesbrough in 2009, Southgate is still a contender and hasn’t decided whether to continue with England beyond Euro 2024.
Manager of England, Gareth Southgate
But given that the two worked together during Ashworth’s six-year tenure as the FA’s head of elite development, Southgate’s close working relationship with the soon-to-be sports director of Man United may be important.
Even if England’s UEFA coefficient indicates that fifth place is good enough, United would still need to catch up to Tottenham—who have played one fewer game—by six points in order to qualify for the Champions League.
Ten Hag’s “reputation remains high in Europe,” particularly in Germany, where Bayern, Bayer Leverkusen, and Vfb Stuttgart may all be interested in signing him as manager when this season concludes, according to reports from the club.
