Manchester United’s first big decision of the summer was to stick with manager Erik ten Hag.
Last season’s eighth-placed finish marked their worst Premier League campaign since the competition began, but the team’s FA Cup victory over rivals Manchester City meant they ended the season with a trophy.
This cup win was also probably what saved Ten Hag’s job, amid reports that other managers such as Thomas Tuchel had been sounded out. The Dutchman would go on to be handed a one-year contract extension and was backed in the transfer market, but he will know that he does not have much margin for error this season.
Eddie Howe touted as Erik ten Hag replacement at Manchester United
Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe (Image credit: Getty Images)
The Red Devils have made an uneven start to the Premier League season, with back-to-back defeats to Brighton and rivals Liverpool sandwiched between two wins, before last weekend’s goalless draw at Crystal Palace.
The club currently sit 11th in the embryonic table, with speculation about the former Ajax chief’s future again starting to arise.
And according to a report from Football Insider, the club are ‘closely monitoring’ Eddie Howe’s situation at Newcastle United after the Magpies boss reportedly fell out with the club’s sporting director Paul Mitchell.
The pair are said to have clashed over transfers this summer, with Howe frustrated by the club’s failure to land Crystal Palace and England defender Marc Guehi, who was the Magpies top target during the window.
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Howe worked with United sporting director Dan Ashworth (Image credit: Getty Images)
The report goes on to add that the Manchester United hierarchy have identified three reasons why Howe would be able to succeed in the Old Trafford hot seat, the first of which is the way he was able to turn Newcastle United into top six contenders.
They also recognise the work Howe did before joining the Magpies, especially what he was able to do with Bournemouth, when he took the Cherries from League Two to the top half of the Premier League. Howe’s media profile also ticks another box for them. FourFourTwo voted Howe as the 11th best manager in the world earlier this year – well ahead of 36th-placed Ten Hag.
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In FourFourTwo’s opinion, it’s easy to imagine Manchester United taking a look at Howe, not least because their sporting director Dan Ashworth worked closely with the Englishman at St James’ Park.
Whether or not it happens is another question, as you only have to look at the way Newcastle dug their heels in over Ashworth’s move to get an idea of how tough they will be if it comes down to negotiating Howe’s release.
