This article was originally published on the Daily Briefing, a subscription service. If you would like to receive Ben Jacobs’ exclusive transfer columns via email ahead of publication on caughtoffside.com, please sign-up for the service here: thedailybriefing.io.
Erik ten Hag and Mauricio Pochettino are in quite similar positions. The aim of both clubs is to judge them at the end of the season, but each manager has an important stretch of games coming up that could prove defining for their futures.
Chelsea’s owners have always planned to judge Pochettino at the end of the season in a two-way appraisal, whilst Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS want to be fair to ten Hag and take some time to assess him.
Neither club is in a rush to make a decision about their manager, and part of the reason for that is that not many top candidates would want to join at this stage of the season.
Naturally, both Chelsea and United are aware that several managers are in demand with Liverpool and Bayern looking for their next manager ahead of 2024/25.
Chelsea haven’t made any determination on Pochettino yet despite growing fan discontent. In an ideal world, they don’t want to make a change, so nothing is pre-decided. It’s true, however, that the club appreciates Ruben Amorim, Roberto De Zerbi and Xabi Alonso.
Sporting’s Amorim was actually looked at prior to Graham Potter being appointed in September 2022 so has been on Chelsea’s radar for quite some time. But looking at names (and even cultivating relationships with them) is just normal succession planning and it doesn’t mean Pochettino is definitely departing. It’s clear, though, failure to achieve European football this season won’t help the Argentine’s case.
Manchester United also rate Amorim and De Zerbi. Zinedine Zidane and potentially Potter could be considered should a change be made. But Ratcliffe and his team aren’t interviewing candidates yet.
Instead they are intent to make executive hires first rather than change the manager. The feeling is it’s counter-productive to resolve the future of ten Hag or way or the other before first finalising a sporting director, with Dan Ashworth close to joining and…
..
