When Manchester United confirmed the appointment of Michael Carrick, there were fears it could be another Ole Gunnar Solskjaer situation.
While it may be too early to say Carrick needs an immediate departure, pressure is already mounting on the former midfielder after United managed just one win in their first four Premier League games.
The positivity from Carrick’s interim tenure seemed to have evaporated with Sunday’s 1-0 defeat at ten-man Manchester City, which only exacerbated the team’s problems.
So, what is INEOS’s solution? Well, Antonio Conte has been targeted.
Why Manchester United should avoid Conte
For now, patience is necessary. It would be ridiculous if Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his colleagues sacked Carrick.
After all, this club needs some stability. They need a period without too much fuss. Ruben Amorim may have been given more time than he deserved, but at least Carrick has shown he can achieve positive results at Manchester United. They should wait now.
However, if leadership does remove the current coach from his role in the coming months, stability is exactly what Conte should be overlooking.
Reports coming out of Italy on Tuesday suggested the great Italian tactician would be at the top of their shortlist should they decide to make a coaching change.
Conte is now a free agent after leaving Napoli at the end of last season. He’s a six-time league champion, a manager who’s won the FA Cup and the Premier League, so you can see the appeal.
That title-winning experience is certainly compelling for United’s hierarchy, but the reality is that this is a manager known for throwing toys out of prams.
Sure, he’s successful, but he may need a stable behind-the-scenes environment to thrive. United’s hierarchy is certainly more stable than before, but recent history suggests Conte might not fare well at Old Trafford. His time at Tottenham Hotspur ended in tears when he criticized the club in a fiery press conference.
“The story of Tottenham Hotspur is this: in 20 years, with this owner, they have never won anything. Why? If they want to continue this way, they can change managers – lots of managers – but the situation cannot be changed. Trust me.” Brutal? Maybe. Fair? You bet.
United don’t necessarily need a yes-man like Carrick to sort things out, but if they do get rid of him, there are better options than Conte.
Why Manchester United needs to hire ‘the best young coach in Europe’
If United decide to give Carrick his marching orders in the coming months, the head coaching market actually looks quite active.
Pep Guardiola remains a free agent. Of course, that’s unlikely to happen, but the likes of Conte, Deschamps, Arne Slaughter, Joachim Low and Eddie Howe have also joined him on the job market.
Another option includes Julian Nagelsmann. His time with the German national team ended in tears when they were knocked out of the World Cup by Paraguay, but this was a man hailed as “Best young coach in Europe”Reporter Josh Bunting reports.
Nagelsmann sets Bayern Munich record | |
|---|---|
game | 84 |
victory | 60 |
lottery | 14 |
fail | 10 |
Number of goals scored | 255 |
goals conceded | 84 |
points per game | 2.31 |
At 39 years old, he is still very persistent in this regard, but why? Well, he has graced the sport along with some of the best talents.
The German coach counts the likes of Guardiola, Ralf Rangnick and Jurgen Klopp as his three main sources of inspiration, while he also served as an opposition scout during Thomas Tuchel’s time as Augsburg reserve team coach. Therefore, he drew ideas and principles from all these people.
Like Klopp, he uses a dynamic high press, and like Pep, he has a possession-oriented style of play. This sounds like an exciting combination. What’s more, goalkeeper Tim Wiese gave him the nickname “Little Mourinho”.
Despite his age, he has a lot of experience. Nagelsmann took over as Hoffenheim coach at the age of 28 and became the youngest manager to win a game in the Champions League history (31 games) and the youngest manager to win the German top flight title at the age of 33.
So while Conte, 57, may be entering the latter stages of his coaching career, Nagelsmann is just getting started.
Things didn’t go well in Germany, but managing the international game is completely different to managing at club level, where he has more than earned his honours. If they do get rid of Carrick, it would certainly be a smart hire.