There will certainly be no shortage of candidates for the Premier League’s Manager of the Year award this season. Unai Emery, with Champions League qualification edging ever closer for Aston Villa, is surely a frontrunner. Ange Postecoglou and Gary O’Neil, doing stellar jobs at Tottenham and Wolves, may be in contention too.
Rob Edwards, should he guide Luton Town to survival, will surely fly up the odds list too.
Over in Italy, however, there is one standout candidate, even despite the remarkable work Thiago Motta has done at Bologna. With 83 points to their name, Inter Milan already have 11 more than they accumulated throughout the entirety of the 2022/23 season, after all.
The Serie A title will be confirmed in memorable style next weekend too, provided Simone Inzaghi’s side beat bitter rivals Milan at San Siro.
Inzaghi has been one of Europe’s more underrated tacticians of recent years, establishing himself as something of a cup specialist first at Lazio before replacing Antonio Conte at Inter. But, after guiding the Nerazzuri to last season’s Champions League final and after taking an already impressive side to another level entirely this term, Inzaghi’s talents are finally being appreciated by the mainstream.
Simone Inzaghi’s Inter Milan can win Serie A next weekend
According to TuttoSport, the former Italy forward has even been considered for the Manchester United post should INEOS opt to move on from the scrambling Erik ten Hag.
Not that Inzaghi was in any mood to cast doubt on his future after a 2-2 draw with Cagliari which puts Inter within 90 minutes of the Scudetto.
“Should I stay next year?” Inzaghi told Sky Italia after becoming the latest recipient of the Enzo Bearzot award, handed out to the best Italian tactician of the current campaign.
“I can say what I feel. Inter has given me a lot in these three years, we have grown and we have made a great journey. We have played many matches and won many trophies. At the end of the year we will sit down and talk.
“There will be no problems to continue this journey together.”
Erik ten Hag facing uncertain Manchester United fuutre
Inter have lost only once in their 32 Serie A games this year, winning 26. The chances are that Inzaghi will not have only the Enzo Bearzot trophy taking up room on his mantelpiece, with the 48-year-old the obvious candidate to being named Serie A’s Manager of the Year too.
Ten Hag, it’s fair to say, will not be picking up any personal gongs of his own over the coming weeks. The Dutchman’s highly-disappointing second season in charge at Old Trafford could yet also be his last, with Saturday’s dismal 2-2 draw at Bournemouth extending Man United’s run to just one win in seven Premier League matches.
Alongside Inzaghi, United continue to be linked with Julian Nagelsmann, Graham Potter, Roberto de Zerbi and the aforementioned Motta, to name but four.