Next Manchester United manager odds: Tuchel tops the market

Bayern Munich coach Thomas Tuchel leads England boss Gareth Southgate in the betting to become the next Manchester United manager with Erik ten Hag’s future at Old Trafford looking increasingly uncertain.

Football betting sites have installed Tuchel as the 3/1 favourite to take over in the Old Trafford dugout as United’s new owners reportedly weigh up a change in manager. 

Ten Hag is approaching the end of his second season as United boss, and having won the EFL Cup and secured Champions League qualification in his maiden campaign, this term has been a disappointment. 

They could still end the year with silverware, although the FA Cup odds make them big underdogs for May’s final against Manchester City. 

An FA Cup win would add some gloss to an otherwise underwhelming season in which the Red Devils crashed out of the Champions League at the group stage, failed to mount a serious title challenge and missed out on a top-four finish.

A change could be coming with United looking to make a fresh start under Sir Jim Ratcliffe. Recent rumours have suggested he’s leaning more towards letting Ten Hag leave rather than keeping him on for the final year of his contract.

Jason Wilcox recently took over as technical director at Old Trafford and is reportedly willing to part with several members of the current squad, and potentially the manager too. 

Should Ten Hag leave, Tuchel has been installed as the early frontrunner by betting sites to replace him ahead of his own departure from Bayern Munich this summer.

BetVictor make the ex-Chelsea boss a best-price of 3/1 to get the job and he’s jumped ahead of Southgate in the market with the England coach having previously been the favourite.

Tuchel, Southgate and Graham Potter are the only three contenders with single-figure prices across the board among bookmakers, although there are some pretty big names just behind the trio in the next Manchester United manager betting market.

Next Man Utd manager odds: Tuchel talking to Red Devils

Tuchel’s odds to become the next United boss were clipped following reports the club had been in contact with the German tactician to discuss a return to the Premier League. 

The 50-year-old left Chelsea just under two years ago. During his time in charge, the Blues won the Champions League in 2021, but he was subsequently let go by the new owners at Stamford Bridge a few months later, 

Not always the easiest coach to work with, Tuchel butted heads with the Chelsea hierarchy and has done so again with those in charge of his current club, Bayern Munich. 

Tuchel has already confirmed he intends to stand down as Bayern boss at the end of the season having overseen the end of the Bavarians’ 11-year reign as German champions. 

Although they’ve missed out on the Bundesliga title and DFB Pokal, Bayern could still end the season as European champions having reached the Champions League semi-finals, where they will face Real Madrid. 

Tuchel is already understood to be in high demand ahead of his impending free agency and success in Europe would make the former Paris Saint-Germain boss even more attractive to prospective clubs. 

Having won league titles in France and Germany, and lifted the European Cup, Tuchel boasts an impressive CV. He ticks the boxes when it comes to success and big club experience, but may not be the right candidate to fit the new management structure United intend to put in place.

Southgate and De Zerbi on the shortlist

Before rumours of Tuchel speaking to United emerged, Southgate had sat at the head of the market on gambling sites. 

Southgate is known to have admirers inside Old Trafford and has previously discussed calling time on his eight-year tenure as England head coach after Euro 2024.

He would be sought after should he hit the open market after this summer’s tournament having taken England closer than anybody to ending their trophy drought when reaching the final of Euro 2020.

However, Southgate hasn’t taken charge of a club side since leaving Middlesbrough in 2009, overseeing Boro’s relegation from the Premier League before he was replaced by Gordon Strachan albeit steering his team into fourth place in the Championship the following term. 

Southgate is a best price of 7/2 with bet365, who also make Brighton’s Roberto De Zerbi a 7/1 chance to get the United job. 

The Italian is another coach highly thought of at Old Trafford and while some bookmakers have made him 11/1 to get the position, others see him as a serious contender.

De Zerbi hasn’t had the best season at Brighton, who have slipped into the bottom half of the Premier League table, but he remains highly regarded across Europe.

Potter a good fit for new United system?

De Zerbi’s predecessor at Brighton, Graham Potter, also features among the front runners to succeed Ten Hag amid reports he’s already spoken to Ratcliffe about the position. 

Potter has been out of work for just over a year following a terrible tenure as Chelsea boss which lasted a little over six months. His failure to get the most out of a dressing room with big personalities will count against him when it comes to deciding the next United boss.

However, he demonstrated at Brighton he can work within a similar system to the one United intend to implement and his possession-based, attack-minded style of play will likely win favour with the Old Trafford faithful.

Potter is also understood to be under consideration at West Ham and is prominent in the next West Ham manager odds as he seeks to get back into coaching this summer.

Other contenders to be next United boss

There’s a long list of candidates being put forward on betting apps, including former Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane. The Frenchman was once the favourite to replace Ten Hag, but the change in ownership at United, coupled with Zidane’s language issues, have seen the World Cup winner pushed back out to 12/1.

The sought-after Sporting CP boss Ruben Amorim is 20/1 to come to United, who would be the third Premier League club to take an interest after Liverpool and West Ham spoke to him earlier in the year.

At the same price are Brentford boss Thomas Frank and Bournemouth coach Andoni Iraola, who have both had relative success in the Premier League. United would represent a huge step up for both managers.

Just behind that pair are two graduates from the United coaching ranks, Kieran McKenna and Michael Carrick. Both cut their teeth at Old Trafford and have gone on to impress as managers, with McKenna on the verge of guiding Ipswich back to the Premier League. 

Carrick nearly took Middlesbrough back to the top flight last season, only to fall down in the Championship play-offs, and has had another relatively successful season at the Riverside, despite failing to make the top six.

Although Carrick has taken charge of the United first-team on an interim basis in the past, it would still represent a huge gamble to appoint either he or McKenna, who have never managed in the top flight, let alone taken charge of a club of United’s stature.