Next Man Utd manager: Surprise candidate to replace Ten Hag 'gains strength'

Tom Weber

• Updated: 13 Dec 2023 12:32 GMT
• 3 min read

Several weeks ago, Julen Lopetegui was being touted as an unlikely replacement for Erik ten Hag as Manchester United manager. Now, his potential appointment doesn't appear quite as far-fetched.

With Man Utd unable to claw their way out of their rut, the position of head coach Ten Hag is becoming increasingly untenable. All season, any brief respite, like the 2-1 victory over Chelsea, has been followed up with poor results and the latest string of losses has properly ramped up the pressure on the Dutchman.

After being humiliated 3-0 on home soil at Old Trafford by Bournemouth at the weekend, the Red Devils were bounced from the Champions League on Tuesday evening by Bayern Munich. Boasting the worst defensive record of any English team in the competition history, United exited Europe's premier competition as the bottom side in their group, thus also failing to get into the Europa League and missing out on a fortune in prize money.

Club legend Jaap Stam has admitted that he is concerned about his compatriot Ten Hag as he faces the axe. "He has got to be worried and thinking about what’s going to happen now,” he said on the Stick to Football podcast. "I worry a little bit for him and that’s why it would be good if he gets the results.”

“It has to do with your player as well, but he invested a lot of money in players that he brought. But are they the right players? My opinion is that they’re not.”

Lopetegui 'well-placed'

Already several weeks ago, Julen Lopetegui emerged as a potential replacement for Ten Hag. The Spaniard has been out of a job since surprisingly parting ways with Wolves mere days before the start of the season and he is keen to manage in England again, according to Relevo.

Indeed, the Spanish outlet asserts that Lopetegui even rejected a lucrative, €18 million-per-season offer from Saudi Arabia recently in hopes of landing another job in the Premier League. The report states that the ex-Real Madrid boss is "very well placed to be the next manager" of Man Utd.

"United is a project that fits perfectly with what he is looking for," it is claimed and Lopetegui has the advantage of previously having coached several of the Red Devils' players such as Raphael Varane, Casemiro and Sergio Reguilon. Lopetegui to United is "gaining strength."