5 managers Manchester United can target this summer

Manchester United's search for a manager to replicate Sir Alex Ferguson's success is still on. Unless something miraculous happens, the Red Devils will be without a league title for a decade soon.

They last won it during Sir Alex's final year in charge at the club. Since his retirement, United's best finish in the league has been a distant second - once under Jose Mourinho in the 2017/18 season, and once under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in 2020/21.

Manchester United had assembled one of the most experienced squads in history. But their haphazard recruitment has been magnified by their confusing choice of managerial appointments. They have now twice sacked a manager within six months of giving him a new contract (Solskjaer and Mourinho).

Ralf Rangnick replaced Solskjaer as interim manager until the end of the season and is expected to have an advisory role at the club for a further two years. United will need to get their next managerial appointment correct and aligned to their overall vision and history of football. Without it, they would remain a rudderless ship at sea.

So, let's look at the 5 top candidates to end up at the helm of affairs in Manchester United this summer.

Mauricio Pochettino

Mauricio Pochettino is presently at Paris Saint-German

Mauricio Pochettino is currently managing Paris Saint-Germain but has come under intense criticism for not getting the best out of their star-studded squad.

Pochettino made his name by making Tottenham Hotspur a title-challenging team with a very limited budget. He plays an attacking brand of football, focussing on high pressing, inspired by Marcelo Bielsa.

His brand of football will sync well with the Manchester United crowd and Ralf Rangnick. While his football was attractive, he never won a trophy with Spurs.

Pochettino is rumored to be leaving PSG in the summer. He was one of the favorites to take over the managerial role at Manchester United when Solskjaer was sacked. It has also been reported that the United players want to work under Pochettino.

As good a manager as the Argentine is, he never really mounted a proper title challenge with Spurs. He has had issues managing the big names and egos at PSG (similar to the Red Devils). His skills at handling big personalities and failure to land the big trophies will be under scrutiny from the United board.

Erik Ten Hag

Erik Ten Hag is said to be Rangnick's preferred choice as his successor

According to rumors, Ralf Rangnick has identified Erik Ten Hag as a potential candidate for Manchester United.

The current Ajax manager embodies most of the historical values of the Dutch team and plays an attractive, attacking brand of football in a hybrid 4-3-3/ 4-2-3-1 setup.

He holds the record of being the fastest manager to reach 100 wins in the Eredivisie. He has won two league titles with Ajax and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League, where they agonizingly lost to Pochetinno's Spurs.

Erik Ten Hag has a very clear philosophy when it comes to football, which will suit the DNA and ethos of United. But there is a huge gap between the difficulty level of the Dutch league and that of the Premier League.

His lack of managerial experience in the Premier League will surely be a cause of concern to the Manchester United board.

Graham Potter

Graham Potter has been very impressive with Brighton

Graham Potter has done a stellar job in the Premier League with a limited budget. Brighton are currently 10th in the league and have the sixth-best xGA (expected goals against), which is a measure of the number of goals a team should concede.

Last season, they had the third-best xGA. This is no mean feat when their current league position is achieved after losing their main defender, Ben White to Arsenal.

Brighton play an attacking brand of football and Graham Potter is clear in his footballing philosophy. He is a wildcard entry, but he ticks the boxes when it comes to Premier League experience, footballing philosophy, and being a strong character. But it is a big leap from Brighton to Manchester United. Is he ready for that?

Zinedine Zidane

Zinedine Zidane has not shown any interest in taking up the job at United, so far

Can we discuss Manchester United's next manager and not include Zinedine Zidane in the discussion? After achieving unprecedented success with Real Madrid across two stints, Zidane is currently out of a job and taking a well deserved break.

According to rumours, he is holding out for the PSG or the French national team job, for the period after the World Cup.

It is impossible to keep track of the number of times he has been linked to the job at Old Trafford. Every time we hear the same story doing the rounds.

Zidane is not interested in managing in the Premier League. He doesn't speak the language and, one can guess that he is not fond of the weather either. But surely, Manchester United will have to try and bring him in if there is even a slight chance of the former French legend saying yes?

Ralf Rangnick

Ralf Rangnick's continuation of his work at United may be the best option for the team

He is here on an interim basis, but another year of Ralf Rangnick may be good for Manchester United. He may not have set the Premier League on fire since he came in, but he has steadied the ship.

Manchester United's performances have improved and their underlying statistics are better. They also seem to be playing with some sort of an identity. If only their forwards could finish off those chances...!

Rangnick has dealt with an imbalanced squad, terribly out of form players, and even external factors involving the players. Credit has to be given to him as he has handled all these challenges exceptionally well and his honest media interviews are a delight to hear.

Another year of Ralf Rangnick will allow Manchester United to settle the squad, bring in a few young, exciting players, and ease them in the league. The team can then move on to finding a suitable manager who will be available then.

He has done this before at RB Leipzig. But will the Manchester United board tread in that direction?