The dust is yet to settle on Manchester United’s mauling at the hands of Tottenham in their last league encounter. The way Spurs sliced open Manchester United time after time was plain embarrassing to watch. The latter swiftly moved in the transfer market after that and secured some vital signings (source – Sky Sports).
However, there have been some more developments in the background regarding Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s job. The higher-ups at the club are believed to have made contingency plans of bringing in Mauricio Pochettino in case performances and results don’t improve under the Norwegian (source – Daily Star).
While results and aesthetics of gameplay have generally improved, there’s an underlying feeling that Solskjaer is not a good tactician. His gung-ho approach of letting the players express themselves and mostly using counter-attacks is slowly starting to wear out and teams no longer afford them the time and space.
It was largely due to Bruno Fernandes that the club finished last season with a flourish. Arguments can be made that Solskjaer wasn’t backed well by the board in a bid to secure necessary players. A centre-back was of utmost requirement, yet, the club made no efforts on the same. The Jadon Sancho saga did nothing but put the club in an embarrassing position.
Mauricio Pochettino has been out of a job since being sacked by Tottenham last year. While he did not win anything, it needs to be noted how much improvement was seen in the Spurs team in the 5 years he was at the club.
Tottenham became Champions League regulars under him and reached the final of the competition in 2019. The club consistently finished in the top 4 places in the Premier League. They finished 2nd in 2016/17 and were only pipped by Chelsea.
Pochettino managed all this on a shoestring budget, often going through seasons without any marquee arrivals. He made Spurs into a beautiful attacking team while encouraging youth development. The likes of Dele Alli, Harry Winks, etc. developed under his tutelage.
At Manchester United, money is usually not a problem. The club, more often than not, spend big each season on players, with the only exception being this season due to COVID. Pochettino employs a style of play Manchester United are accustomed to seeing – free-flowing football but making sure not to compromise defensively.
From the up, Pochettino and Manchester United look like a very good match. While Solskjaer has done good work in this short time, he doesn’t look like the man to take Manchester United back to their glory days. The international break provides some respite but in less than two weeks time, things get rolling again.
Unless the Manchester United legend can turn things around drastically within a short period of time, calls to replace him will only grow louder.
If we were to go by logic, there is no manager available currently that is the right person to take over from Solskjaer apart from Pochettino.
