Manchester United’s rocky start to the season has led to plenty of discussion about Ruben Amorim.
A positive overseas tour for Manchester United is already looking like another false dawn, amid a poor start to the 2025/26 season.
Amorim has gained only four points from four games to begin the season, but even more damaging was the Carabao Cup exit to Grimsby Town, a result that alerted the world to another Manchester United crisis.
United are fully behind Amorim, but fans have been here before. Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Erik ten Hag were all sacked between October and December, after results got worse instead of better.
The media are never slow to twist the knife either, and The Mirror claim there is already a five-man shortlist of potential successors.
We decided to rank them from worst to best, counting down to the most likely and most suitable option…
Gareth Southgate (England coach)
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5) Gareth Southgate
Yes, Gareth Southgate has been linked with the Manchester United job again. It is more than one year since he quit his post as England manager, and he is yet to take on another managerial job. Can somebody else hire him please?
Southgate was linked last year, and we were vehemently against a move, believing that his dour approach with England would not translate to club level, where he is totally unproven. If we could place him sixth on this list, we would.
Fulham boss Marco Silva, in black jumper
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4) Marco Silva
Fulham manager Marco Silva ranks at number four, by the simple virtue of being ‘not Gareth Southgate’.
Silva was linked to United a year ago, but it was not an option that many fans took seriously. We would suggest that the Portuguese coach is merely on the list to make up the numbers.
Could he do a better job than Ruben Amorim has done over the past 12 months? Probably. But it would be genuinely hard to do any worse.
Mauricio Pochettino, in Chelsea tracksuit
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3) Mauricio Pochettino
Linked to Manchester United for the best part of the last decade, the Mauricio Pochettino to Manchester United rumours just won’t go away. He’s the managerial version of the annual transfer links to Adrien Rabiot.
Pochettino is currently managing the USA national team, where he has the luxury of not having to qualify for the World Cup they are hosting.
Their recent results have been shaky, losing the Gold Cup Final to Mexico, and then consecutive friendlies to Japan, and South Korea last week. Perhaps there is a scenario where he gets fired before the tournament, and suddenly becomes available.
His last stint in the Premier League was with Chelsea, where he lasted one season, finishing in sixth place.
Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola
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2) Andoni Iraola
Now this is much more intriguing. Bournemouth coach Andoni Iraola is emerging as one of the best in the Premier League, producing genuinely impressive results on a modest budget.
He is the pre-Tottenham Pochettino, only a matter of time before he gets poached by a bigger club.
In four competitive games managed against Manchester United, Iraola is unbeaten, with two wins and two draws, and they currently rank fourth in the Premier League.
Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner
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1) Oliver Glasner
Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner’s patience was tested by the Eagles in the transfer window when they sold Eberechi Eze and came close to selling Marc Guehi. Joining a club with Manchester United’s resources could allow him to turn the tables.
Interestingly, Glasner plays with a three-at-the-back system, yet his tactics do not have the holes that Ruben Amorim’s sides have struggled with. Glasner has proven that his system works in the Premier League, even defeating Manchester City in the FA Cup Final.
Glasner is a top, achievable alternative to Amorim, who could give United the inside track to signing midfielder Adam Wharton too, and even bring Guehi to Old Trafford with him too on a free transfer next summer.