Zinedine Zidane replacing Erik ten Hag at Manchester United is ‘increasingly real’ according to a report in Spain which claims the Red Devils are ‘willing to make a considerable offer’ for the Frenchman and an alternative option.
Ten Hag is under huge pressure at United with his side sitting in 14th in the Premier League after just two wins from their opening seven games of the season, in which they’ve scored just five goals.
The Dutchman retained his job at the end of last season after claiming his second trophy in two years with victory over Manchester City in the FA Cup, having won the Carabao Cup in his debut campaign, despite leading the Red Devils to their lowest ever Premier League finish of eighth.
He was handed a one-year extension by new co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, whose Ineos team conducted a thorough strategic review of the club and deemed Ten Hag to be the right man to take them forward.
But another £200m spend in the summer, taking Ten Hag’s overall transfer spend to £600m in his time at the club, has done nothing to improve performances or results at Old Trafford, and a bore draw last time out against Aston Villa has done little to ease the pressure on the 54-year-old, with the United chiefs set to meet on Tuesday to discuss his future.
Thomas Tuchel and Gareth Southgate have been heavily tipped to take over should Ten Hag be sacked, Inter boss Filippo Inzaghi is also thought to be in the frame, while assistant coach Ruud Van Nistelrooy could be offered the job on a short-term basis.
But according to a report in Spain, Zidane is ‘considered an ideal option to return the club to the elite’, with his proven ‘ability to handle complicated locker rooms’ also said to be an attractive quality in the minds of the United chiefs.
Asked about the possibility of managing United, Zidane said last month that the language barrier is an issue for him.
The 52-year-old said: “Would I want to go to Manchester [United]? I understand English, but I’m not completely fluent in it. I know that there are coaches who go to clubs without speaking the language, but I work in a different way.”
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But the report claims – without any particular detail as to why – that Zidane ‘taking the reins of the club is increasingly real’.
The same is apparently true of Xavi Hernandez, who stepped down from his post as Barcelona boss at the end of last season, and – like Zidane – is in no great hurry to return to the bench. The report adds:
‘Known for his style of play based on possession and control of the ball, Xavi would fit well into the philosophy that the English club has tried to implement in recent years, although it remains to be seen if he would be willing to accept such a complicated challenge at a time of so much instability.’
It’s claimed Xavi and Zidane’s reticence to return to training ‘could complicate negotiations’ but ‘United, aware of the situation, would be willing to make a considerable economic offer to attract one of the two technicians’.
