Winners and losers of Conte taking Man Utd job

Carlo Garganese

• Updated: 23 May 2023 08:54 CDT
• 4 min read

Antonio Conte is the red-hot favourite to succeed Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as Manchester United manager, if the Norwegian is given his marching orders.

The Italian manager is widely considered as one of the best football coaches of his generation, having achieved incredible success over the last decade with Juventus, Chelsea and Inter, as well as a successful spell with the Italy national team.

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But if he takes over at Man Utd, who and what would be the winners and losers?

WINNERS

HARRY MAGUIRE

Harry Maguire has endured a disastrous season so far in 2021-22, particularly over the last week where he has been at fault for the majority of the 11 goals conceded in the matches against Leicester, Atalanta and Liverpool.

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Maguire has demonstrated time and again that he is far more comfortable in a back three rather than in a back four, impressing massively at Euro 2020 in the former system.

Conte will deploy his favourite three-man defence at Old Trafford and he will get the best out of Maguire, the type of combative defender that the Italian loves working with.

PAUL POGBA

Whether or not Paul Pogba stays at Man Utd past the end of this season remains to be seen, given his contract expires in the summer of 2022.

But for as long as Pogba is at Old Trafford, he will surely benefit from having Conte on board. It was the Italian who launched Pogba’s career as a youngster at Juventus in 2012 and they enjoyed two fantastic seasons together in Turin.

The only position that Pogba is truly comfortable in tactically is on the left of a three-man central midfield. Assuming Conte plays the 3-5-2 (it is possible he could play a 3-4-3) he used in Turin with Pogba, then we could finally see the Frenchman play to his best levels in Manchester.

TROPHY CABINET

Solskjaer is approaching his third anniversary in charge at Old Trafford and he is still yet to win a single trophy.

It is also approaching five years since Man Utd won a trophy and it will be nine years in May since the club won the Premier League. This is completely unacceptable for a club as big as Man Utd.

But Conte is a serial winner. He would likely guarantee a league title within two seasons, having won the championship in his first year with Juventus and Chelsea, and in his second year at Inter.

If Man Utd want to win titles again, Conte is perfect.

LOSERS

CRISTIANO RONALDO

Cristiano Ronaldo is potentially the biggest loser if Conte gets the Manchester United job.

Conte’s style of play demands that every single one of his players runs through brick walls for him. He requires his players to play with intensity and to have a strong workrate and stamina – both in matches and in training.

He asks for his attackers to press from the front and be the first line of defence.

This is all totally at odds with Ronaldo, who at approaching 37 years old is no longer able or willing to run and press. Indeed, a recent report in the Daily Mail showed that Ronaldo was the worst presser in the Premier League among forwards and even ran less in the Champions League this season than Wolfsburg goalkeeper Koen Casteels.

Conte simply won’t accept this.

STABILITY

Antonio Conte is the toughest taskmaster in football management, not only on the pitch but also in the transfer market, in training, in the boardroom and so on.

He is a perfectionist who demands that every area of the club is well-oiled and is run by competent people.

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This could obviously be a problem at Man Utd, given the club has been run so badly and incompetently up above over the last decade.

Conte walked out on Juventus and Inter because he was unhappy with decisions taken above him. How will he react if the Glazers starts prioritising commercial success over football success?

The Italian rarely lasts more than two years in one job, so while he may bring instant glory and trophies to the club, it is unlikely he will create a dynasty like Sir Alex Ferguson.