United alerted by Pochettino friction at PSG
⮞growing tension in France could open door to early move ⮞manager at odds with club’s sporting director Leonardo
Growing friction between Mauricio Pochettino and Paris St-germain’s sporting director, Leonardo, could open the door for Manchester United to swoop for the former Tottenham manager.
Pochettino is believed to be willing to quit PSG for Old Trafford – with tensions rising in the French capital – should the Manchester giants settle on the Argentine as their preferred choice to succeed Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. United have been busy drawing up a shortlist of potential candidates to replace Solskjaer on an interim and permanent basis and the prospect of a return to the Premier League and England, where his family live, appeals to Pochettino. PSG are not believed to have any plans to move Pochettino on, and neither has he told them he wants to leave.
But there is an uneasy relationship with Leonardo and that could play into United’s hands in their hunt for a pedigree manager. PSG will attempt to establish Pochettino’s intentions in the coming days, but not before PSG’S Champions League clash with Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium tomorrow night.
The fact he is living in a hotel in Paris while his family remain in London has not made efforts to settle in France any easier, although sources close to him have played this down, suggesting the bigger issue is how the club operate. Despite PSG being 11 points clear at the top of Ligue 1, the owners’ priority is to win the Champions League and the pressure to deliver that trophy only intensified last summer after Lionel Messi’s arrival from Barcelona. Michael Carrick has been placed in temporary charge following Solskjaer’s sacking and will oversee his first game in Spain tonight when United face Villarreal in the Champions League, knowing victory would guarantee their place in the knockout rounds and provide some brief respite after a tumultuous few days. “Whether it’s one game or two games [I’m in charge], or whether it’s a little stretch longer than that, right now I’m not too
sure and that’s not something that’s on my mind – it’s all about [Villarreal],” Carrick said.
United said in their statement confirming Solskjaer’s exit on Sunday that they would look to appoint an interim manager until the end of the season, but they will move to appoint a permanent replacement much sooner if the right candidate becomes available.
Erik ten Hag, the Ajax coach, said he had heard “nothing” about the United job, although it is believed he would be interested if it was on offer. However, he is not expected to be available until the end of the season. Brendan Rodgers, the Leicester manager, and Zinedine Zidane, the former Real Madrid coach, and Gareth Southgate, the England manager, have also been heavily linked.
United’s interest in Pochettino dates back as far as 2016, before he signed a new contract with Tottenham, and he was thought to be the frontrunner to replace Jose Mourinho before the Old Trafford hierarchy opted to give the job full time to Solskjaer in March 2019 after a successful spell as interim.
There is not expected to be any repeat of that with Carrick, but it is not clear if Pochettino would be United’s first choice to take over from Solskjaer. Harry Redknapp, the former Tottenham manager, said he believed Pochettino wanted to live in England and would “love” the United job, even if he hinted that his failure to win a trophy during a 5½-year spell at Spurs could be one factor that counts against him.
“Pochettino, I’m sure he’d love the job,” Redknapp said. “But Poch had five good years at Tottenham and didn’t win a trophy, as good as he was. I’m sure it is a job that anybody would jump at – to manage Man United, one of the biggest clubs in the world.”
The pressure to appoint a new manager will only intensify if United’s slide continues against Villarreal and Premier League leaders
Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday. Saturday’s 4-1 loss at Watford was their seventh defeat in 13 matches. A draw will be good enough to secure progression to the Champions League round of 16 tonight should Atalanta fail to beat Young Boys. But Rio Ferdinand said it was “embarrassing” the club found themselves in this situation.
“All of a sudden, we lose, and the club make a decision,” the former United defender said. “It’s all reactive. Nothing is prepped. Even the management situation, surely you look at this before. It’s actually embarrassing.” Harry Maguire, the United captain, said the players had to accept “huge responsibility” for the mess at the club.
Cristiano Ronaldo paid tribute to Solskjaer, in a post on Instagram below a picture of the pair that ended: “Most of all, Ole is an outstanding human being. I wish him the best in whatever his life has reserved for him. Good luck, my friend! You deserve it!”