Five managers who can bring glory back to Manchester United

The Portuguese tactician was sacked after their humiliating defeat to Liverpool and the club is on the look-out for new manager. 

Having won just one out of their last five games in the league including a recent defeat at Anfield to arch-rivals Liverpool, Manchester United’s chances of finishing in the top four are in a serious threat. 19-points behind league leaders Liverpool, 11-points behind UCL qualification and eight points behind fifth-placed Arsenal, United are in serious trouble.

After sacking Jose, the board needs to act faster to go for the right name possible. While the gloom of Champions League tie against Paris Saint-Germain hangs above, they need someone from the top-notch to take them on a respectable podium by the end of this season and beyond.

Let’s look at the five possible managers who could take up the job at Old Trafford.

Laurent Blanc

Blanc, who last coached PSG in 2016, hasn't taken up a managerial job since, and with Mourinho now sacked it would be a good comeback for the Frenchman at United, where he also served a player back in 2003.

The 53-year-old has a decent managerial record as he led French club Bordeaux to a Ligue 1 title and a Coupe de la Ligue title in 2009. From there, he went on to manage the France National Team in 2010.

However, the highlight of his career as a manager came in 2013 when he joined PSG. In his three year stint with the Parisians, he led them to three league titles, three Coupe de la Ligue and two consecutive Coupe de France titles. 

During this time, he also won the Ligue 1 Manager of the Year award thrice and French manager of the year award twice. Given the opportunity, the Frenchman can definitely succeed at Old Trafford considering he is little familiar to English football as a player.

Eddie Howe

Having helped Bournemouth secure three promotions to finally play in the Premier League, Eddie Howe has been an outstanding manager for the Cherries. No wonder the Englishman was selected as the Manager of the Decade in 2015 when the Cherries entered the Premier League for the first time in their history.

In just three seasons in the Premier League, Bournemouth have already achieved the status of a mid-table team which shows their excellent progress and Howe deserves all credit for it.

Under him, players like Callum Wilson and Ryan Fraser came into the limelight and are now targetted by many top-flight European clubs. 

Indeed, the former Burnley boss can be a good replacement for Mourinho as he already comes with good experience in the League and he has got everything to bring honours to himself and the club.

Mauricio Pochettino

The Argentinian has emerged as one of the top managers in the world right now and as Arsenal manager Unai Emery has said, he deserves to be called 'one of the best' alongside Pep Guardiola and Diego Simeone. 

Pochettino, who joined Tottenham from Southampton in 2014 led them to a second place finish in 2017, their best since 1963 and also their first unbeaten run at home since 1965 in the same year. 

The 46-year-old was also tipped by many to join Real Madrid after Zinedine Zidane left the club in May this year. However, Pochettino signed a new contract at White Hart Lane to keep him at the club till 2023. Nevertheless, United may look at him as a possible option to succeed Mourinho as after all, he has superbly led the Spurs to consecutive top-three finishes in the last three years and are also competing in the knockout stages of the Champions League this season. 

Moreover, players like Harry Kane, Dele Alli and Eric Dier have all flourished in Pochettino's attacking style of play, which is being craved since long at United. He definitely has the potential to bring back the winning days at Old Trafford.

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Leonardo Jardim

Another Portuguese? United fans may baffle at that thought but former AS Monaco, Sporting CP and Olympiacos boss Leonardo Jardim has a good possibility of replacing his compatriot, Mourinho, at Old Trafford. The 44-year-old has had a great record at Monaco whom he led to consecutive third-place finishes in his first two seasons at the club.

Jardim famously led the young side to their first league title in 17 years in 2017 against the likes of Paris Saint-Germain and also led them to the semi-finals of the Champions League. Under him, players like Kylian Mbappe, Bernardo Silva, Fabinho, Benjamin Mendy and Tiemoue Bakayoko all came into the limelight.

Jardim’s appointment at United wouldn’t be of much surprise if it ever happens as he does have a good chance of succeeding at the club even though the Premier League may be completely new to him.

Zinedine Zidane

Following a classical Champions League final win against Liverpool in May, Zidane shocked everyone as he stepped down as manager of Real Madrid. His legacy at the Santiago Bernabeu was very successful and highly admired as in his two-and-a-half year stint, he led the Los Blancos to a La Liga title, a hat-trick of Champions Leagues, Two UEFA Super Cups, Two FIFA Club World Cup and a Supercopa de Espana.

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Zizou has since long, been looked to as a possible replacement option for Mourinho as his man management skills are highly regarded unlike the Portuguese. The 46-year-old is also reported have the interest to join the Premier League giants recently and he will be an ideal man to manage the Red Devils.

The Frenchman has everything that United need to get back to winning ways and in fact, many fans are already craving for his appointment against the sacked Mourinho.