Manchester United are struggling to put together a run of results under Ruben Amorim and have now been urged to hire a Champions League winner as his successor, or another shock name.
Man Utd boss Ruben Amorim is under pressure
Nobody likes to see a manager lose their job, but the Red Devils are struggling under Amorim and they sit in the bottom half of the Premier League with four points from four matches played.
Tasting defeat at Manchester City in comprehensive fashion on Sunday has only amplified calls for something to change. Nevertheless, Amorim is keen to try and turn things around with his current system rather than changing tact.
Ruben Amorim
He stated after the 3-0 loss to talkSPORT reporter Alex Crook: "The system is not the problem. You are here, and you saw Manchester United playing with a different system. Most of them, 4-3-3, and (it) was more or less the same result.
"I will try to do my best in the way I see the game, I don't see the system as you guys see the system, so I will try to do my thing."
More coaches than ever are willing to die on the hill of their tactics. Ultimately, football is a game of opinions, and Amorim will put trust in the Red Devils' early season underlying numbers as something to work with moving forward, given they ranked first in the top-flight XG table with a score of 6.78 before their collapse at the Etihad Stadium.
Either way, not everyone is convinced by the former Sporting boss and his methods, prompting a former Premier League striker to make a suggestion about a potential alternative.
Charlie Austin says Man Utd should appoint Zinedine Zidane or Sean Dyche
Per The Express, Charlie Austin has suggested that Manchester United should target Zinedine Zidane to replace Amorim if their form continues, while the former Burnley and QPR striker also put Sean Dyche's name out there as a surprise tip to steady a leaking Old Trafford ship.
He said: "I think he's got to go, if it's my decision, I'm going after Zinedine Zidane. Ultimately, there are a different set of managers that you've got to be looking at, because the situation Manchester United are in, I would take Zidane but is he the right man for the job and how we see them, probably not.
Zinedine Zidane Sean Dyche
Wins: 190 Wins: 195
Draws: 63 Draws: 138
Losses: 47 Losses: 208
Preferred formation: 4-4-3 Preferred formation: 4-4-2
Trophies won Trophies won
3x Champions League 2x La Liga 2x UEFA Super Cup 2x FIFA Club World Cup 2x Spanish Super Cup Championship 2015/16
"In my honest opinion, you have to look at the job Sean Dyche did at Burnley, what he did at Everton. For me, he stabilised the club, at least he's going to put structure in there."
Zidane and Dyche are starkly different bosses, but Austin's clear overriding emotion stems from change being needed to halt a run of results that has left Manchester United needing to fix a slow start to the campaign.
Persistence will be key for now, though a victory against Chelsea this weekend could be critical for Amorim to quell any lingering doubts over his future.