“Why not go for him?” – Paul Merson feels Manchester United must ‘monitor’ outstanding Premier League manager

Former Premier League midfielder Paul Merson has advised Manchester United to monitor Brighton manager Graham Potter closely in their search for a permanent coach.

Speaking on Sky Sports, the former Arsenal midfielder said:

“I’m a big fan of his, I think he plays brilliant football. If I was Manchester United, I would be watching Potter. They [Brighton] haven’t got the quality of Man United players, and they play this great football. I’d be monitoring him, I’d think why not go for him? For me, I think he’s outstanding.”

Graham Potter has taken the Premier League by storm since his appointment as Brighton manager in May 2019. The Seagulls have impressed several neutrals with their attack-minded style, despite having a lower budget than the bigger teams in the league.

Manchester United, by contrast, have struggled despite having one of the most expensively-assembled squads in the world. The Red Devils are currently in seventh position with nine wins and 32 points from 20 games played. Brighton have fared reasonably, being in ninth position with six wins and 28 points from the same number of games played.

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Despite a managerial change, Manchester United's Premier League struggles are still glaring

Ralf Ragnick has not improved Manchester United significantly

The Red Devils were plagued by inconsistency and a lack of cohesion under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. The club arguably did not make much progress in his three-year spell in charge.

This led to his dismissal and the appointment of Ralf Ragnick on an interim basis. The German came with a reputation for being an astute tactician who had had an influence on modern-day Premier League coaching greats like Jurgen Klopp and Thomas Tuchel.

Despite the positivity surrounding the 63-year-old's arrival, no significant change has been perceived at Old Trafford, with previous complaints of inconsistency still present.

The players have not shown any improvement in tactical drilling or pressing that was expected, considering Ragnick's antecedents.

Furthermore, Manchester United have been rocked by allegations of dressing room divides and player fall-outs, with public statements by some players suggesting such.

The latest came in an interview by Cristiano Ronaldo in which the five-time Ballon d'Or winner appeared to take a swipe at the younger players in the squad.

In it, he questioned the mentality of his teammates, saying:

"I can give an example. If I give you advice, even if you are younger than me, if you don’t implant that during your daily life, it will be difficult. I will be the number one to help. But if you don’t want my help, don’t do your job, don’t look for yourself, and don’t do your best to help the team... ".

''For you to be professional, help the team, the right mentality, self-taught and positive. All these details depend on you, not the coaches, the fans or the press. If you are proud of yourself, and you have dignity, you have to do it much more.”

His statements echo those of teammate Luke Shaw which came after the 1-0 defeat against Wolverhampton Wanderers. He said the players were not pulling together in the same direction to take the club in the direction they wanted.

Manchester United's latest Premier League set-back came when they threw away a two-goal lead in a 2-2 draw with Aston Villa.

The stalemate meant the Mancunians are a whopping 24 points behind their city rivals and table-toppers Manchester City.