Can Southgate turn Man United on again?

Manchester United are rumoured to have shortlisted England manager Gareth Southgate to take over from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at the end of this season. The Norwegian was appointed on an interim basis until the end of the current campaign following Jose Mourinho’s sacking in late 2018, and the Red Devils are reportedly chasing Southgate to take over the helm at Old Trafford on a permanent basis.

Southgate and his Russian legacy

Southgate has shot up the managerial rankings in recent months, thanks to England’s memorable World Cup campaign in Russia where they eventually finished fourth. Southgate’s only domestic managerial job thus far has been a respected three-year stint at Middlesbrough, where he was controversially sacked with the club just one point off top spot in the Championship.

Manchester United to look closer to "home" for their next manager? 😉

Catch up on the latest transfer news and rumours right here:https://t.co/pUMfEDHena

— Goal (@goal) January 13, 2019

However, following an impressive stint with the England Under-21s and taking over the mantle of the National team, Southgate has become one of the most respected and sought-after managers in the game. During his time in charge of the Three Lions, he has been widely complimented for placing trust in a younger generation of players whilst also adopting an exciting, attack-minded style of play. This is why he is seen as an ideal candidate to take over at Old Trafford.

The other contenders

United are yet to make a comment on the matter, and have reportedly set Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino as their number one target. But, there is a concern about the amount of compensation it may take to lure the Argentinian away from Spurs to Old Trafford. United, who have been previously linked to Spurs star Toby Alderweireld, see Pochettino’s style of football and ability to bring the best of whatever players are at his disposal as absolutely ideal for United’s global audience.

Elsewhere, United have also been widely linked with French legend Zinedine Zidane, who has been out of work since leaving Real Madrid last summer. Zizou won three consecutive Champions League titles at Los Blancos, and would be the type of blockbuster name one would expect to take over at Man Utd.

Following on from recent reports, Southgate appears to been seen as the perfect successor to Solskjaer and would be seen as a substantially less risk compared to Zidane, who has never managed in England before. The cost to lure Pochettino from a project he has worked on for years may be too much, so the charisma and charm may be enough for Southgate to get what could be seen as his biggest managerial job thus far.

Featured image credit: Кирилл Венедиктов [CC BY-SA 3.0 GFDL, CC BY-SA 3.0 or GFDL], via Wikimedia Commons