Manchester United were outplayed by Manchester City in their 2-0 defeat at Old Trafford. Solskjaer’s side looked clueless against Guardiola’s well drilled City players who controlled the match with their precise passing and came under no pressure at any point in the game. Although, the win against Spurs and the draw against Atalanta gave Solskjaer some relief after the disastrous 5-0 game against Liverpool, the pressure is back on after this performance.
After Conte’s appointment at Spurs, the pool of available managers got smaller for United to pick from, if they decide to sack Solskjaer. Let’s take a look at three options who are out of contract at the moment and who might be a good fit at Old Trafford.
Zinedine Zidane
The problem with Zidane is that United would have to do a lot of convincing as it is reported that the Frenchman is waiting for the France national job. He has had great success at Real Madrid and in Ronaldo and Varane, he has two players who know him well and trust him. He has the profile for the Manchester United job but it remains to be seen if he is ready to come back to club football or not.
Ernesto Valverde
Even though he was sacked by Barcelona, Valverde won two consecutive league titles at Barcelona, post which the club have not managed to win any. Under him, Barcelona did go out of Champions League in a shocking manner twice, once against Roma and once against Liverpool. But in general, his Barcelona side played attacking football in a 4-3-3 formation but was let down by poor transfers and an aging squad.
Lucien Favre
Favre is someone who favours an aggressive, high pressing and attacking minded football which is what United fans are desperate to see. Favre hasn’t had success at the highest level but is seen as a great tactician who wants his teams to play on the front foot with high tempo. He might be a great short term appointment until United can go after some big names like Mauricio Pochettino who are in contract at the moment.
