Neville: Pochettino would ditch PSG for Man Utd

Martin Macdonald

• 22 Nov 2021 11:33 GMT
• 3 min read

Gary Neville believes Mauricio Pochettino would leave Paris Saint-Germain in a heartbeat to return to the Premier League as Manchester United manager.

The former Tottenham boss has emerged as a leading contender to replace Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who was sacked as Man Utd manager on Sunday following an embarrassing 4-1 defeat versus Watford.

Solskjaer has guided Man Utd to recent losses against Liverpool, Manchester City and then Watford, with the performances in each of those matches some of the worst the club has seen in years.

Pochettino was previously a target for the United job before he returned to Paris, and according to Sky Sports he would be interested in taking over at Old Trafford despite overseeing a star-studded squad in the French capital.

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Neville believes Man Utd would be a more suitable long-term project for Pochettino than PSG.

"I think Mauricio Pochettino - although he'd never say it - would leave to come to Man Utd on a five-year deal tomorrow," he told Sky Sports.

"He'd look at that group of players, he'd look at the club and he'd realise he'd probably be able to achieve more than he wants at Man Utd in terms of a project.

"At PSG you are on season by season, 'you've got to win the Champions League or you're out'- type of model. I don't think that suits Pochettino. I think he would absolutely come to Man Utd on a five-year deal, with backing behind him."

Who will replace Solskjaer?

Michael Carrick will take temporary charge of Man Utd as the club have announced they will look for an interim boss until the end of the season.

At the moment, the leading contenders to replace Solskjaer are Pochettino and former Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane.

The Frenchman's success both as a player and a manager is almost unmatched by the majority of his peers.

However, he doesn't speak English, so that may present an issue, while he is also reportedly keen on the France job whenever it becomes available.

Antonio Conte was mentioned before he was appointed Spurs boss.

Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers, distances himself from the Man Utd job while Solskjaer was still in charge, but may be interested in making the switch to Old Trafford.