Ranking the five favourites to replace Ruben Amorim as Man Utd manager: Southgate, Maresca… | OneFootball

The Portuguese coach had been given patience and backing by the United board, in spite of disastrous results over his first year at the helm, but recent press conference appearances suggested that all was not well behind the scenes – and sure enough he’s been shown the exit door.

Darren Fletcher will take temporary charge, but Amorim’s long-term successor is anyone’s guess.

We’ve had a look at Oddschecker, and here are the five current favourites to take the big job at Old Trafford.

1. Oliver Glasner – 5/2

The clear favourite.

Glasner has established a reputation as one of the best coaches in the Premier League, having worked wonders to deliver the first trophy in Crystal Palace’s history. But there are rumblings behind the scenes as he approaches the final six months of his current contract.

The fact that he’s been wedded to a 3-5-2, the same system that Amorim so painfully failed to implement at Manchester United, is a potential sticking point.

But the Austrian coach is no ideologue. His willingness to adapt would be music to the ears of the Manchester United hierarchy, with whispers that Director of Football Jason Wilcox tried to get Amorim to move away from the failing wingback formation.

“The system? It must fit the players,” Glasner told Sky Sports earlier this season.

“There is too much discussion about the system. The system is not important. Habits are important, the patterns and how you want your players to behave on the pitch. That is much more important.

“In my career I have played every single system. I got promoted in Austria with a 4-4-2, then we switched to a 3-4-3. In Wolfsburg, we reached the Champions League with a 4-2-3-1. In Frankfurt, they played with three at the back before and it fit the squad.

“I always look at what system might suit the players we have best. My favourite system is 4-4-2, but do we have the right players for this? We are talking much more about our habits than the system. The system is very fluid.

“It’s important the players know what we want to do and this is what decides about being successful or not.”

A piece of advice for Glasner: Repeat that in the job interview and you’d be golden.

2. Enzo Maresca – 6/1

Who could’ve seen this one coming?

It was less than a month ago that the Italian picked up the Premier League’s Manager of the Month award, fresh from an excellent spell of form that saw them dominate Arsenal and completely outplay Barcelona in the Champions League.

But a downturn in form and a breakdown of his relationship with the Chelsea board sees him out of a job.

Maresca is evidently open to another Premier League job, having reportedly been sounded out to succeed Pep Guardiola at Manchester City – and been more than amenable to the idea. But could United get there first?

3. Laurent Blanc – 8/1

*David Brent face*

What are you doing here?

It wouldn’t be a bookies’ shortlist without a name completely out of leftfield. Needless to say, take this one with the biggest pinch of salt you can fit between your fingers.

Yes, Blanc has history at Old Trafford from his playing days.

Yes, he even has a bit more coaching pedigree than you might think, having led PSG to a customary period of domestic dominance. He also won a Ligue 1 title with Bordeaux back in the day and led Al-Ittihad to the Saudi double last season.

But, c’mon. Very little about this would make any sense at all.

4. Xavi Hernandez – 10/1

“Xavi is studying the Premier League, Xavi is monitoring the Premier League, and Xavi would go immediately to Man United, even without European football,” Fabrizio Romano stated in a YouTube update posted back in September.

The Catalan coach has been out of work since leaving Barcelona at the end of the 2023-24 campaign.

“The priority is the right project, not the money,” a source close to Xavi told BeInSports after Xavi turned down an offer from Spartak Moscow earlier this season.

Manchester United reportedly didn’t approach him when he was available, instead going for Amorim, in October 2024. You wonder if they might change tack now.

Xavi never quite delivered the kind of tiki-taka football you might expect from a disciple of Pep Guardiola and Johan Cruyff, but he could organise a defence and his pragmatic approach saw Barcelona win the La Liga title back in 2022-23.

5. Gareth Southgate – 12/1

Southgate’s name was always going to appear somewhere, wasn’t it?

Ever since Jim Ratcliffe emerged on the scene, the former England manager has been linked with the job.

However, there are conflicting reports on this one.

It’s also been said that former Manchester United sporting director Dan Ashworth pushed for Gareth Southgate to become the side’s next manager following the dismissal of Erik ten Hag, but was ultimately overruled by the CEO.

It’s believed that Ashworth’s keenness to reunite with Southgate – who he worked alongside at the FA – was among the top reasons he only lasted a few months in the job.

United going back to Southgate now would disprove that theory. Watch this space.