There are a few candidates for the post already. Eddie Howe has once again been linked, having been a favoured candidate of former sporting director Dan Ashworth, while out-of-work bosses Antonio Conte and Julian Nagelsmann are also thought to be in the mix.

Mauricio Pochettino is also a contender, having previously been linked after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s sacking in 2021. But who is the best man for the job?

We’ve taken a closer look at what all four men bring to the table in a few key areas. By the end of this article, you’ll have a better idea of what United need and who will be best at providing it.

Experience

Has already held down three Premier League jobs and you can’t say he made any of those teams worse. Southampton spell began with a relegation battle, Spurs brought a pair of title challenges and Chelsea saw him contend with a tricky ownership structure. All bases covered, though he has never quite reached the Spurs heights away from north London.

Howe: B

Howe, like Pochettino, has plenty of Premier League experience under his belt. However, he also has a relegation with Bournemouth on his CV - albeit in a Covid-affected season when they failed to adapt to empty stadiums during the run-in. More recently, he gets credit for ending Newcastle’s long trophy drought, but his final season at St James’ Park was a challenging one.

Conte: A-

Conte is the only one of the four with a Premier League title under his belt, though this came a decade ago when the competition was rather different. Both there and at Tottenham, significant achievements were followed by swift downturns in form which accelerated his exit, but he can also point to success stories at clubs in Italy.

Nagelsmann: B-

Nagelsmann is another with a title under his belt, though Bayern Munich sacked him during his second season with the club at risk of falling short in the Bundesliga. The youngest of the bunch at 39, he has less managerial experience and none in the Premier League.

Style of play

Pochettino: B

The World Cup showed you can still teach an old dog new tricks in Pochettino’s case, with a real attacking threat from a team which, pre-tournament, didn’t necessarily look capable of producing such a thing. He has made the most of exciting attacking talents in years gone by, be that Harry Kane and Son Heung-min at Tottenham or Cole Palmer at Chelsea.

Howe: B-

Howe produced plenty of exciting moments with his Bournemouth and Newcastle teams but there have also been some drier displays. A return of 85 league goals with the Magpies in 2023/24 stands out; however, things were tougher after Alexander Isak’s departure, and United’s current lack of attacking options might cause concerns.

Conte: B-

We can expect a run, run, run approach under Conte, something which is great when it works but can eventually grate with the players. The squad will need to buy into how the Italian operates, but he will hope he can point to his prior success to get them on board.

Nagelsmann: B

Some alarm bells might ring over Nagelsmann, given his status as a Ralf Rangnick acolyte, but him not being the actual Rangnick ought to help. His pressing style could provide excitement and, indeed, more of an identity than in recent seasons under Carrick and some of his predecessors - though it remains to be seen if the current crop are up to the physical task right away.

Transfer success

Pochettino: B+

Managers will always have hits and misses, but Pochettino can point to two of his clubs’ best recent signings coming under his watch in the form of Son and Palmer. Other success stories include Toby Alderweireld, Achraf Hakimi and Moises Caicedo, though there have been plenty of expensive missteps, including Christopher Nkunku at Chelsea and Tanguy Ndombele at Spurs, though the good and the bad often came with input from those above.

Howe: B-

Howe’s time at Bournemouth saw questions asked about his signings, not least the tendency to throw money at Liverpool outcasts including Jordon Ibe and Brad Smith. However, there were some more impressive buys, not least the calculated gamble of Nathan Ake, while there were plenty of positives at Newcastle including Isak, Anthony Gordon and Bruno Guimaraes.

Conte: B

Conte’s first season at Chelsea was in huge contrast to his second - N’Golo Kante and Marcos Alonso played a big part in the title charge whereas Tiemoue Bakayoko and Danny Drinkwater were absolute busts. More recently, he made some inspired calls - not least Scott McTominay’s move to Napoli - though it’s a mixed bag.

Nagelsmann: B+

Nagelsmann has come into jobs with varying degrees of financial backing but has picked out plenty of diamonds - most notably, he was in the dugout when Hoffenheim completed a permanent move for Andrej Kramaric, who has gone on to become their all-time top scorer. Other big signings under his watch included Dominik Szoboszlai and Josko Gvardiol at RB Leipzig, though his Bayern Munich business was less successful than that of his successors.

Media skills

Pochettino: B-

Pochettino has had an up-and-down reputation when it comes to dealing with the media, with the highs coming during his Spurs spell, though his early translator-led press conferences at Southampton frustrated some members of the press. Perhaps more concerningly, the high-pressure environment at PSG was where he struggled to keep his composure the most - something which might not bode too well for United.

Howe: A-

Howe has developed a reputation as a bit of a media darling and one might expect him to get an easier ride than some of the others. He has generally been able to keep his cool, but it remains to be seen whether the extra pressures of the United role change that.

Conte: C

It depends on what you’re after here. From the perspective of us as journalists with copy to file, Conte is a dream, though it might be less fun for those within the club. He has been behind plenty of spicy interviews, with the one which accelerated his Tottenham exit perhaps the most dramatic.

Nagelsmann: C+

Nagelsmann seemed to feel the pressure during his time as Germany boss, though the comments made by successor Jurgen Klopp suggest that might have been tough for anyone. That said, the media are hardly likely to go easy on any United manager, and he might find it tough to manage the situation in a second language.

Overall

Pochettino: B+

Howe: B

Conte: B

Nagelsmann: B-

Nagelsmann could have the highest long-term upside but could also crash and burn a la Ruben Amorim, given his recent record and lack of Premier League experience. While Pochettino is by no means a sure bet, he appears to tick the most boxes.

One thing's for certain, though. The international break gives United a window to get the right man in and give them a bit of time to figure out what's needed right now and what needs to be the priority in their first transfer window. They'll feel they really can't afford to get it wrong.

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