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Manchester United have contacted former Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino to replace Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Solskjaer’s position at Old Trafford looks increasingly tenuous ahead of today’s trip to Goodison Park to face Everton.
After three defeats in their first six Premier League games, United fell to a new low in the middle of the week, losing 2-1 to Turkish champions Istanbul Basaksehir.
Daily Star Sport reported last month that if Solskjaer loses his job, Pochettino is United’s first choice to replace him.
United have already surveyed the Argentine and, after contacting his representatives, discovered that he is eager to assume the position.
(Image: EMPICS Sport)
United Executive Vice President Ed Woodward is a huge fan of the former Spurs boss and, despite being reluctant to fire Solskjaer, could make the decision if they suffer a loss to the Toffees.
Pochettino is ready to return to management, for the first time since he was replaced as Spurs boss by former United manager José Mourinho.
“I’m always ready to go back and play the game,” Pochettino told Sky Sports earlier this week. “It is not stress when you are working, it is not stress to go into the training round to prepare for the game and compete.
“I hope to be back soon so we can start working again. I really want to get back in the game. I love this game, but it is difficult, we are in and working to get things done. That is reality.”
So with Pochettino in the frame of the highest position at Old Trafford Sport mirror I have taken a look at what he has said about some of the players he could manage in the coming months.
Paul pogba
(Image: Getty Images)
Many believe Pogba’s stay at United could come to an end. Solskjaer confirmed that the club had agreed to a 12-month extension to his contract, but critics have continued to point to his sub-par performances.
But Pochettino is clearly a big fan of the Frenchman, comparing him to Eden Hazard in January last year, suggesting that he is one of the best players in the Premier League.
“When you play in this Premier League, every weekend or every three days like we’ve been playing in the last few months, it’s always about the opponent having some players that can make a difference,” Pochettino said.
“Like last Tuesday it was Hazard, and now Pogba. Pogba is a very talented player, a great player of course. But it’s not just Pogba or Hazard, there are different players around.
“Of course they are special players. Manchester United have a great squad with great players with a lot of quality. Of course we are not going to be just focused on Pogba, we should focus on the whole team, not just one player.”
Luke shaw
The left-back is a position any Old Trafford manager will have to decide on.
The arrival of Alex Telles means that Shaw could risk leaving United’s starting XI in the near future.
Pochettino helped Shaw burst onto the scene during his time with Southampton and in his final season with the Saints, the Argentine claimed he was one of the best in the world at his position.
“He can play for Real Madrid or the World Cup as a starter. He really has the quality to do it, ”Pochettino said in 2014.
When asked if he could be one of the best left backs in the world, he added: “I’m not sure if he already is. I think so.
“I’m not sure if he’s already the best in the world.”
That level of respect seems mutual, as the United defender said he would love to play with Pochettino again.
“I think that with Southampton he achieved the impossible,” he wrote in the epilogue to his former coach’s book. “We were one of the best soccer teams in the league … I hope I can play for him again one day. And I think he really wants me to play for him again.
“He used to call me his son, that’s how good our relationship was. I’ve had many ups and downs, but when he was with Pochettino, he just went up, up, up.”
Donny van de Beek
(Image: UEFA via Getty Images)
Van de Beek’s lack of playing time under Solskjaer has been one of the big talking points this season.
Solskjaer is slowly bleeding the former Ajax player, but fans are growing increasingly frustrated.
Spurs linked up with the Dutchman in 2019 and before the Champions League semi-final, Pochettino praised him.
When asked who his biggest threat was, he said: “Van de Beek. Nobody talks much about him. But he has dynamics in the game, he gets behind Tadic, arrives, works, scores goals.
“Logically, I love De Jong and De Ligt. But the example of how this Ajax works is Van de Beek. I like very much. They have a young player, from the academy, in each line, who shows what the team is ”.
Manchester United are looking to chart their way back to the top.
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Ole Gunnar Solskjaer may have missed Jadon Sancho in the summer, but he still made some big moves in the transfer market with Donny van de Beek, Alex Telles and Edinson Cavani arriving.
But their start to the season has been mixed, with a home loss to Crystal Palace and a 6-1 beating of the Spurs at one end of the scale, and a tremendous 2-1 win over PSG in Paris in the other.
The question now is whether they can find the right balance.
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Odion ighalo
(Image: Getty Images)
The Nigerian appears to exceed the requirements at Old Trafford, but in 2015, Pochettino admitted that he was a fan of the then Watford forward.
Before a game with Spurs, he said: “Ighalo is very good, I know him from Spain and he is a striker who is difficult to deal with. We have to be smart and do our work by Monday. “
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