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Manchester United have made England manager Gareth Southgate their No.1 choice to replace Erik ten Hag this summer, according to reports.
Ten Hag’s future at Old Trafford is up in the air with new minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, in charge of football operations, refusing to publicly back the Dutchman.
It was previously reported that Ratcliffe saw Zinedine Zidane as his ‘dream’ manager but the Frenchman had no interest in taking the job at Old Trafford.
Former Chelsea head coach Graham Potter has also been strongly linked to the United job after he held talks with incoming sporting director Dan Ashworth.
But according to the Daily Star, Southgate has now become United’s top managerial target following his stellar work in charge of the Three Lions.
Southgate impressively guided England to the World Cup semi-finals in 2018 as well as their first major final since 1966 with a runner-up finish at Euro 2020.
Ratcliffe is growing increasingly confident of luring Southgate to United this summer and is not convinced Ten Hag is the right man going forward even if he wins the FA Cup and secures Champions League qualification this season.
Southgate’s England contract is currently set to expire in December and he has refused to discuss his future until after Euro 2024 in Germany.It is thought that Ratcliffe ‘would like a decision sooner rather than later’ from Southgate so he can start planning for the 2024-25 campaign and beyond.The 53-year-old has the backing of some of United’s current players as well as incoming sporting director Ashworth while Ratcliffe and Sir Dave Brailsford have also consulted a number of club legends who are keen to see Southgate come in.