A former Red Devils defender is not convinced that a manager building something special in north London will be tempted to replace Jose Mourinho
Mauricio Pochettino could have “his own statue outside the ground” at Tottenham, says Paul Parker, so why would he want to inherit the Manchester United mess left behind by Jose Mourinho?
Those at Old Trafford find themselves in fire fighting mode once more after taking the decision to part with the Portuguese coach.
The axe fell on Mourinho after a testing start to the 2018-19 campaign, with United currently sat sixth in the Premier League table and 19 points behind leaders Liverpool.
A fresh start is now being sought, with former fans’ favourite Ole Gunnar Solskjaer drafted in to help steady the ship.
He will be hoping to stake a claim for a more permanent appointment, with many of the other candidates reported to be in the frame dividing opinion.
Former United defender Parker told Eurosport of the links to Spurs’ highly-rated head coach: “Everyone will talk about Mauricio Pochettino taking on the Manchester United job at the end of the season.
“Poch is moving into an unbelievable stadium with Spurs. If the chairman Daniel Levy can give him a little bit of money in the new stadium to improve certain bits of his squad with the young players, why would he leave there?
“If he can win a first English title with Tottenham since 1961, suddenly he’s going to have his own statue outside the ground. If he wins it for Manchester United, they will say ‘we expect you to do that: that’s why you are here’.
“Why would Pochettino want to go straight to United after all he has built at Tottenham over the past four years? People will shout about the size of United and the money he would have to spend, but football is not like that any more.
“People don’t automatically go and play for United because of the name. First of all, they think they want to be in London and secondly, they think who the coach is. They all want to be around London. Even Mourinho stayed in London as United manager.”
Parker added: “If the coach is right, the players are there. Look at Liverpool. Why have Liverpool brought all those exciting players to Anfield?
“It is Liverpool to a point, but it is mainly because of Jurgen Klopp. Liverpool’s history comes in after that. If United get the right coach, they can attract better players. If Mourinho had stayed on, he wouldn’t have signed any great players because they know it is was going to be a dispiriting existence.
“United need a coach that connects with the players, and makes them the priority. Games are won and lost by what happens before players go on the pitch.
“If you get them tuned up physically and mentally right, the football takes care of itself. The problem with United is that those players were not prepared properly mentally, being run by a manager whose face was screwed up like a bulldog chewing a wasp.
“That is not a good look.
“United need a proper coach, a figure who can develop young talent without constantly demanding money. Pochettino fits the bill for United, but I’m not convinced he will give up what he is building at Tottenham.”
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