Former Liverpool and Real Madrid striker, Michael Owen, has weighed in on the speculation surrounding the Manchester United head coach position, explaining why he believes Zinedine Zidane is unlikely to replace Erik ten Hag at Old Trafford.
Owen gave this explanation in an interview with BoyleSports.
Instead of Zidane, Owen sees Thomas Tuchel as a strong candidate to take over from Ten Hag, who is facing pressure due to Manchester United’s current struggles in the Premier League.
With United currently in eighth place and fighting to secure European qualification, the upcoming FA Cup final against Manchester City on May 25 could be pivotal for Ten Hag’s future.
Despite the rumors swirling around potential replacements, including Gareth Southgate, Roberto De Zerbi, Kieran McKenna, and Graham Potter, Owen believes Tuchel could be the right fit for Manchester United, depending on Bayern Munich’s decisions regarding his future.
“Zidane doesn’t speak much English so I’m not sure Man Utd would be on his radar personally. I would be very surprised.
“Tuchel would be an interesting one. If Bayern won the Champions League, could there be a U-turn?
“They haven’t won the league but if you offered them the Champions League only at the start of the season, they would snap your hand off.
“But yes, he could become available and I think a lot of Chelsea fans regret parting with Tuchel. He is one big name capable of the job.
“The one out of them I’d be most surprised at would be Zidane. I think it’s very possible it will be Southgate or Potter, they are very impressive guys.
“It was a difficult time when Potter took over, so you would not want to scratch his name and say it was an awful job. I don’t think Potter and Southgate are out of the question,” Owen said.
