Sir Jim Ratcliffe is reportedly a ‘huge admirer’ of England boss Gareth Southgate with Manchester United head coach Erik ten Hag ‘set to be sacked’.
It is being widely reported that Ten Hag is likely to be sacked as this season has been miserable for the Premier League giants.
Man Utd are at risk of missing out on Europe as they are eighth in the Premier League table with two games remaining. They will boost their chances of qualifying for the Europa League/Europa Conference League if they beat Newcastle United on Wednesday night.
The Red Devils exited the Champions League and Carabao Cup prematurely, but they have reached the FA Cup final.
A win at Wembley against Man City later this month may not even be enough for Ten Hag to keep his job as Man Utd are being linked with several potential replacements.
“Yeah, that was the name…”
Southgate has emerged as a contender with his contract due to expire this year. Pundit Jason McAteer claims he’s had a conversation with a Man Utd player who said the England boss is the most likely replacement for Ten Hag.
“I won’t name names because I don’t want to say who he is but he plays for Man United and I had a conversation with him on Friday, I bumped into him because I live just outside the area,” McAteer said on beIN Sports.
“We got into conversation, great lad, and I asked him about the end of the season and what he thought and he gave me no inclination that the manager was there to stay.
“In fact, we spoke about different names and who we thought will be a good fit and I got no inclination from him.”
After denying suggestions that Thomas Tuchel or Jose Mourinho could replace Ten Hag, McAteer revealed Southgate was the individual mentioned as a likely replacement for Ten Hag.
“Yeah, that was the name,” he added.
A report from Football Insider reveals a ‘major update on a Southgate deal’, with the Red Devils ‘likely to look past the England boss’ as another manager is the ‘leading candidate’.
‘Southgate is not the top Man United target with Ten Hag set to be sacked
‘Ratcliffe and INEOS director of sport Dave Brailsford have close links with Southgate and are huge admirers of his work with England. However, there will be no negotiations with the Three Lions boss over the Man United vacancy before or during the European Championships – which don’t conclude until the end of July.
‘A well-placed source has told Football Insider that United will look elsewhere as they search for the right man to kick-start the INEOS era at Old Trafford.
‘Football Insider revealed earlier this month (5 May) that Thomas Tuchel is the leading contender to be the next Man United manager.’
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