Having succumbed to a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Southampton on Saturday, the curtains could be about to close on Louis van Gaal’s rather underwhelming 18 months as Manchester United boss.
Both the board and the fans appear to have fallen out of love with the Dutchman amid his failure to provide inspiring performances or acceptable results, with his increasingly laboured possession-based philosophy widely criticised by supporters, former players and pundits alike.
Which begs the question of who could potentially succeed the 64-year-old if he’s relieved of his duties within the next few weeks.
In an ideal world, United would wait until the summer to appoint their next gaffer, when Pep Guardiola and any international manager who impresses at Euro 2016 should become available. But now five points adrift of a Champions League spot, the Carrington outfit don’t have time to wait around.
They may feel forced to appoint an immediate replacement or failing that will put someone in charge on an interim basis until the end of the season. So with that in mind, we ask who could take the United job – either permanently or temporarily – if it was offered to them right now.
RYAN GIGGS
Appointing Ryan Giggs until the end of the season is the likeliest and most logical scenario, should Louis van Gaal be relieved of his duties in the coming weeks.
The Welshman is the most decorated player in Manchester United and Premier League history and has now experienced three incredibly different styles of management under Sir Alex Ferguson, David Moyes and LVG – serving the latter two as assistant manager.
He understands the traditional Red Devils identity better than anyone else involved in the current regime and certainly looked the part when stepping as caretaker after Moyes’ dismissal in April 2014, claiming two wins from four games.
But with the club’s Champions League status on the line, the 42-year-old’s inexperience could prove incredibly costly. Furthermore, he’s not actually done anything to prove he can handle a job of United’s magnitude yet.
JOSE MOURINHO
Hiring Jose Mourinho is like doing a deal with the devil. You’re guaranteed silverware, but also irreverent antics, a relentless media circus and ultimately, a spectacular implosion by his third season in charge.
Nonetheless, United are still searching for their first trophy since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement and few would bet against ‘the Special One’ providing it. He’s still just 42 years of age but has already won two Champions League titles alongside domestic titles and auxiliary trophies in Portugal, Spain, Italy and England.
The Portuguese has also reached the semi-finals of the Champions League eight times from ten attempts and the ability to reinstate United’s reputation in Europe could prove to be a decisive factor for the club’s hierarchy.
But whether Mourinho’s pragmatic style of play would be accepted at Old Trafford remains an overshadowing debate and his long-standing association with Chelsea – not to mention how it ended in December – leaves a slightly sour taste.
Furthermore, if United wanted to hire the former Real Madrid and Inter Milan boss, why haven’t they done it already?
FABIO CAPELLO
There are certainly more inspiring choices than Fabio Capello but the former England gaffer is a steady-eddy who could keep United tiding over until the end of the season.
He’s undertaken some of the biggest jobs in world football – not least including Roma, Inter Milan Juventus, Real Madrid and perhaps the most testing gig the beautiful game as to offer, the Three Lions post – and certainly won’t be overawed his surroundings at Old Trafford.
The Italian knows the English game well from his four years in charge of the national team and perhaps most importantly of all, won’t be attempting to implement his own ideals on the United squad. Rather, Capello has made a career out of pragmatically adapting to the tools at hand.
Indeed, I’m sure most United fans would love to see their team line up in a basic 4-3-3 for the rest of the season, with conventional full-backs, conventional wingers, conventional strikers and everybody playing in their actual positions. That’s probably what Capello offers most.
But the 69-year-old’s spell in charge of Russia was a massive disappointment and whether he’s interested in temporary appointments remains to be seen.
MARK HUGHES
Having seemingly lifted the cloud of negativity that surrounded him after a troubled eleven months at QPR, Mark Hughes is emerging as one of the Premier League’s hottest management properties once again.
He previously performed well during spells in charge of Blackburn Rovers, Fulham and Manchester City but the Stoke City job represents arguably his greatest triumph yet – transforming a side that were only capable of playing in one, very direct and very thuggish, way under Tony Pulis into one of the Premier League’s most exciting teams to watch.
Getting the best out of notoriously mercurial talents Marko Arnautovic, Xherdan Shaqiri and Bojan has shown the Welshman’s ability to work with difficult characters who are used to a very high standard of football and the Potters’ new, expansive style of play would certainly appease the disillusioned Old Trafford faithful.
Furthermore, the 52-year-old is a United fan favourite, having claimed two Premier League titles, three FA Cups, a League Cup and a UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup during his two spells at Old Trafford as a player.
Unlike those aforementioned, however, Hughes is currently under contract at the Britannia Stadium.
SIR ALEX FERGUSON
He’s changed his mind on retirement before and could well do so again, depending on how bad things get at Old Trafford during the next few weeks.
Needless to say, Sir Alex Ferguson is the greatest manager in Manchester United and Premier League history, who won 13 Premier League titles, five FA Cups, four League Cups and two Champions League titles during his 27 years in the Red Devils hotseat – winning 895 of his 1,500 games in charge.
The Scot is a figure the players, the fans and the board will instantly trust and even after two-and-a-half years out of the game, his managerial mind is still up there with the best in the business. Furthermore, United has become somewhat institutionalised around his own image and ideas, so the argument that he’s the only man who can fix the club’s problems is certainly a strong one.
That being said, where would that leave United in the long-term? Would they simply come back to Fergie every time a season takes a downward turn, reanimating his body decades after his passing?
Likewise, whoever goes on to succeed the 74-year-old as United boss could once again become inevitably overshadowed by his incredible reputation.