Don Hutchison believes there are plenty of managerial candidates that could ‘galvanise’ Manchester United but they might not be big enough names for the club.
Erik ten Hag is hanging on to his job by the skin of his teeth as the flailing Dutchman hit a new nadir this past week.
Manchester United’s dreary season sunk to a new low after they were trounced 4-0 by Crystal Palace on Monday.
Michael Olise was the star of the show with two fine goals while Jean-Philippe Mateta and Tyrick Mithcell also got on the score sheet.
It was an unthinkable 13th loss of the Premier League season and if United lose their three remaining games then they will finish with the same number of defeats as victories.
With Arsenal, Newcastle and Brighton to come, that’s far from an unrealistic outcome and it would be a damning indictment of Ten Hag’s reign.
There is a growing feeling that Ten Hag is sure to lose his job this summer. Even winning the FA Cup might not be enough to save him, just like it wasn’t for fellow Dutchman Louis van Gaal.
However, Gary Neville believes he should get one more season. He told Sky Sports: “I don’t see a suitable replacement for Ten Hag available.
“Bayern Munich are struggling to find a replacement, others are struggling.
“I think we need to stick with Ten Hag and give him one more season – an injury-free season – to see if United can get back to the standards of last season where they won a trophy and finished in the top four.”
However, Don Hutchison believes there are plenty of good candidates out there it’s just that they might not be glamorous enough names for United. Candidates like Brentford boss Thomas Frank.
Pundit says Thomas Frank could replace Erik ten Hag
The pundit told BBC Radio 5 Live at 8:28 pm on Friday that Frank would bring what’s missing to Old Trafford.
He said when asked about Neville’s comments: “I am a little bit split.
“Because I think there are candidates out there, candidates Man United probably wouldn’t really want in terms of how big they think they are, but Thomas Frank could galvanise the football club.
“I think Thomas Frank the main job that he did was unifying I think players, staff to the fans and got a bond, and that is clearly missing at United.
“So, someone like him. I would never want Eddie Howe to leave Newcastle, but he would be a fantastic manager. I think there are managers out there.”
Gary Neville’s defence is not good for Erik ten Hag
As Neville says, there may be a lack of world-class coaches on the market this summer (though the man actually leaving Bayern Munich, Thomas Tuchel, wouldn’t be half bad) but that shouldn’t stop a team from looking.
If the only defence anyone can muster up for Ten Hag is that there are no other names to replace him then it’s no defence at all.
That’s like saying you shouldn’t take your shirt off when it’s on fire because you haven’t got a replacement shirt handy. Get the one that’s burning you up off first and deal with finding a new one afterwards.
And make no mistake, United have gone up in flames this season.
Injuries will be a mitigating factor but Ten Hag has still had a starting line-up worth £400m+ every week and, from the first game of the season up until the latest, there has been no improvement whatsoever.
Injuries can’t be used as an excuse when there have been no signs of improvement, structure or even a discernable tactical plan that makes any sense.
As Mikel Arteta showed at Arsenal, as long as you can prove you’re heading in the right direction then you deserve patience and time. The only direction United have gone in this year is backwards.
There are candidates out there, as Hutchison points out, but regardless, United must rip off their flaming shirt before worrying about their new one.