Michael Owen details ideal candidate for Man United job
Michael Owen has weighed in on one of the hottest topics in football right now – who should be the new Manchester United manager?
The Ballon d’Or winner played for United from 2009 to 2012, in a move that caused controversy due to his past affiliation with Liverpool.
Owen enjoyed probably the best years of his career at Liverpool before he moved to Real Madrid in 2004.
Owen has shared his thoughts on the vacant role at Manchester United. Pic: Marc Atkins/Getty Images
However, despite lighting up the league with showers of goals at Anfield, it was his time at United that earned Owen his only Premier League medal.
Owen won the league with United in 2011, marking the second-last time the Red Devils have claimed the crown to this date.
After Alex Ferguson retired with one final title in 2013, United have struggled to even finish in the top four for much of the past decade.
Owen played for United from 2009 to 2012. Pic: Michael Regan/Getty Images
Last season was the worst of all United’s recent disasters, finishing 15th and going trophyless.
Despite this, Ruben Amorim managed to keep his job at the helm, until enough was enough this month.
Owen admitted that he wasn’t surprised by Amorim’s sacking after his comments following his final game in charge, though he found the Portuguese manager’s demeanour ‘quite refreshing’.
Ruben Amorim was sacked after 14 months in charge. Pic: Carl Recine/Getty Images
The former England striker told Extra.ie: ‘That possibly is one of the reasons why he kept the job after some real dips, because his results at the end of the day, compared to any manager in the last decades, were worse.
‘So I think there was a little bit of that, and I also think there was a little bit of everybody thinking, “we can’t just keep changing the manager”. So people were willing to give him even longer.’
Owen shared that he had not spoken to Darren Fletcher, who has taken charge of United’s two games since Amorim’s departure, but he was hopeful that the Scotsman could pick up a decent result during his temporary time in the hotseat.
Darren Fletcher has taken charge on an interim basis. Pic: Oli SCARFF / AFP via Getty Images
However, United have won neither of Fletcher’s games as interim boss, drawing 2-2 away to Burnley and losing 2-1 at home to Brighton in the FA Cup.
Meanwhile, Owen looked ahead to who United’s eventual permanent manager will be, outlining key characteristics that he believes are needed for the role.
He continued: ‘I think lots of fans like the idea of going back to basics, going back to their roots, going back to an ex-player, going back to someone who knows the club. I think you have that cycle as a fan and as a person in lots of things in life.
Owen has detailed the ideal characteristics that he believes are needed for the role. Pic: Tom Dulat – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images
‘If you want the new foreign sexy football tactical master and all the rest of it, that’s got a little bit of a twang on his accent and everybody is excited.
‘Then the reality is you get bored of that after a little bit and you think, “Do you know what? Let’s go back to a Roy Keane, a Paul Scholes or Gary Neville, Nicky Butt”, that generation of players.
‘You want experience. You want somebody that understands the club. You want attacking football. You want aggressive football.
Oliver Glasner is a possible candidate for the job. Pic: Sebastian Frej/Getty Images
‘You want so many things, but in reality, is there a manager out there that holds all those aces that can offer all those things?’
Owen named Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner as a manager with strong potential for the United job, while also labelling Marco Silva and Andoni Iraola as possible candidates.
He also mentioned former England boss Gareth Southgate, but shared some concerns.
Owen shared concerns over appointing Gareth Southgate. Pic: Hesham Elsherif/Anadolu via Getty Images
Owen added: ‘It’s weird for him because obviously what he did with England, but his club record goes back a long way now with Middlesbrough, which we don’t really know what manager he’ll be.
‘I think that Gareth Southgate, in general, would not be a popular appointment with the fans and that has to be taken into consideration. I think that’s the big negative with Southgate. I don’t think he will appeal…
‘Manchester United demand a certain style of play. I think there’s a lot of scepticism about that appointment.
‘However, on the flip side, he is a very smart guy. He could be the absolute type of person that could run a club of that size, get them right back on the straight and narrow, and work with the hierarchy exceptionally well.’
Michael Owen speaking with via Extra.ie via Casino.org, a leading authority on online casino sites in Ireland.
