While Manchester United’s management still backs current manager Amorin for now, the club has begun keeping an eye on potential replacements given the team’s worrying recent form.
Sources within the club insist they have not identified a successor to Amorin, but acknowledge that speculation over the Portuguese manager’s future is simmering. Looking back, Erik ten Hag was sacked last season after suffering four defeats in the first nine league games—but the current management has placed more trust in Amorin, who is the first manager appointed by co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe since he took over the club.
This summer, United prioritized signing players with Premier League experience in the transfer market, bringing in Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo in succession. This selection criterion is also likely to apply to the appointment of the next manager.
This strategy has affected the coaching prospects of former England manager Gareth Southgate, who has not managed a Premier League team since Middlesbrough’s relegation in 2009.
Southgate has previously suggested that he may not return to management after his ally, Manchester United director Sir Dave Brailsford, left the club. Sir Dave Brailsford has stepped back from club affairs after failing to improve the team’s performance at Old Trafford.
Other notable candidates include Oliver Glasner, who led Crystal Palace to the first FA Cup title in the club’s history last season. This season, Crystal Palace have also become the only unbeaten team in the Premier League, and ended Liverpool’s winning streak with a 2-1 victory last Saturday.
Andoni Iraola took charge of Bournemouth two years ago and guided the team to a ninth-place finish last season. Despite losing key players such as Dhehisan, Illia Zabarnyi and Kerkz this summer, the “Cherries” currently still sit third in the league table.
Matthias Hütter succeeded Roberto De Zerbi as Brighton’s manager at the start of last season and eventually led the team to an eighth-place finish. After a 3-1 win over Chelsea last Saturday, the “Seagulls” climbed to tenth in the standings. The 51-year-old Glasner, like Amorin, is fond of the 3-4-2-1 formation—a similarity that could be an advantage for his potential appointment. The German manager previously led Eintracht Frankfurt to win the 2022 Europa League title and boasts an impressive European pedigree. So far, Crystal Palace has not been able to agree on a contract extension with Glasner, whose contract is set to expire. Iraola’s contract with Bournemouth runs until the summer of 2026, while Hütter has a deal with Brighton until 2027.
Next up, Manchester United will face Sunderland before the October international break, and then travel to Anfield to take on Liverpool on October 19. The Red Devils have failed to win in their last ten visits to Anfield, with their last away victory over Liverpool dating back to January 2016.
