Image Credits: Getty Images
The future of the role of manager at Manchester United has been somewhat of a rollercoaster over the last few weeks.
Erik ten Hag’s position has been uncertain at best, with the Dutchman currently going through the end-of-season review which will ultimately decide his fate at Old Trafford.
Whilst the Premier League club struggled in the league, coming eighth overall, and coming bottom of the group stage in the Champions League, getting knocked out of the competition, the Red Devils defied the odds and beat Premier League champions Manchester City 2-1 in the FA Cup Final to lift the trophy.
With this impressive and unexpected victory, ten Hag secured European football for the club for next season, whilst also winning his second trophy in two years at the club, a stat which will no doubt be considered by the management at the club in the current review.
In order to be proactive in the managerial market, United had pulled together a shortlist of four potential replacements to ten Hag should they decided to part ways with the Dutchman.
This move was reported to have been accelerated by the sacking of Mauricio Pochettino from Chelsea, making a high profile manager available.
Pochettino was joined on the shortlist by fellow former Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel, currently at Bayern Munich, as well as Brentford’s Thomas Frank and the former Manchester United first team coach, Kieran McKenna, who’s success with Ipswich Town has been remarkable.
It was also reported that following his sacking from Barcelona, United were in contact with Xavi Hernandez, the Barcelona legend, to enquire about his availability to take the helm at Old Trafford.
Xavi is no stranger to success, with the midfielder winning a total of 31 trophies across his career which spanned two decades, including the La Liga trophy eight times, the Spanish cup three times, the Spanish Super Cup six times, the Champions League trophy four times, UEFA Super Cup twice, the European Championship twice and the World Cup.
The Spanish international made a tremendous 929 appearances in his club career for Barcelona B, Barcelona and Al-Sadd SC who he moved to for his final four years of his career. Across these games, Xavi scored an amazing 112 goals, but more so set himself up as a playmaker getting 217 assists across all competitions.
These stats were definitely replicated on the international stage, with the World Cup winner representing Spain 133 times, getting 12 goals and 25 assists, helping the squad to European and World Cup success.
With such an impressive career, it’s no surprise that United and a number of other big name clubs, such as AC Milan, have considered the services of the footballing legend, however, One Football report that United have since decided to go in a different direction, which is unknown at this time.
