’s board are split over who to appoint as manager this summer, with and Erik ten Hag dividing opinion.
The club are currently doing background checks on candidates and they’ve whittled their list down to four names; Pochettino, Ten Hag, Julen Lopetegui and Luis Enrique.
Though the last two are candidates, Pochettino and Ten Hag lead the race. However, say there’s a split in the board over who to pick.
With Ten Hag and Pochettino currently at the helm at and Paris Saint-Germain respectively, it will not be cheap to prise either manager away from their current positions.
But beyond the difficulty of appointing the managers is doubts about both pair’s suitability to the role.
In Ten Hag’s case, though his career is clearly on an upward trajectory, he has no experience of the Premier League and United would be his first job at a European giant.
While Ajax are historically one of the most famous clubs in world football, the Dutchman hasn’t dealt with the expectations or budget of a club like United.
Pochettino, on the other hand, has found out the hard way in Paris what it is like to deal with a squad of superstars.
Lille pipped PSG to the league title last season, while the Ligue 1 giants were again humiliated in the Champions League as they were knocked out by Real Madrid having had a 2-0 aggregate lead.
Pochettino, of course, has Premier League experience having made Tottenham into title challengers during his four years in north London.
He also impressed at Southampton, where he revolutionised the club’s style of play with the likes of Adam Lallana, Luke Shaw and Morgan Schneiderlin.
But Pochettino’s stock has dropped dramatically in the last 12 months given PSG’s performances.
There is a feeling that United would be appointing the right man at the wrong time in Pochettino, given they’ve twice tried to hire him in the past when he was on the up.
United’s board are therefore unsure which direction to go in, with a split among officials as to who is a better fit for Old Trafford.
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