Manchester United owner Ratcliffe holds talks with Tuchel

Manchester United minority shareholder Jim Ratcliffe met former Bayern Munich boss Thomas Tuchel last week to discuss the manager’s position at Old Trafford, according to a report in Germany.

A full analysis of United’s football operations – now run by Ratcliffe’s Ineos Group – is expected to be concluded shortly and a verdict made on current boss Erik ten Hag after a disappointing season for the club on the field.

United won the FA Cup with a surprise victory over Manchester City to qualify for the Europa League but their Premier League performance was poor with Ten Hag’s men finishing in eighth place.

Bild journalist Christian Falk has reported today that Ratcliffe met with Tuchel to discuss the possibility of the German taking over from Ten Hag for next season.

Tuchel is out of work after leaving Bayern a year into a two-year deal after a poor season that saw them relinquish their Bundesliga title to Bayer Leverkusen.

The 50-year-old knows the Premier League from a previous spell at Chelsea, with whom he won the Champions League in 2021.

✅ Exclusive: There was a meeting in Monaco last Tuesday between Thomas Tuchel and the new Manchester United shareholder Jim Ratcliffe
❇️ Tuchel revealed his plans if he were to take over the coaching position in the event of Erik ten Hag being fired
❇️ Tuchel is said to have…

— Christian Falk (@cfbayern) June 9, 2024

Falk claimed on X: “There was a meeting in Monaco last Tuesday between Thomas Tuchel and the new Manchester United shareholder Jim Ratcliffe.

“Tuchel revealed his plans if he were to take over the coaching position in the event of Erik ten Hag being fired.

“Tuchel is said to have explained to the United co-owner how he could get United’s sporting problems like [Jadon] Sancho and Mason Mount back on track.

“Tuchel mentioned Antonio Rudiger as [an] example that he had already succeeded in the past in getting players with great potential back to top performance.”

What has Ten Hag said about his future?

Ten Hag has spent two years at Old Trafford and has yet to convince although he is confident he will succeed elsewhere should Ratcliffe decide to go in a different direction.

Speaking after the Cup final win over City, he said: “Two trophies in two years is not bad. 

“Three finals in two years is not bad. I’m not satisfied with it. We have to do better.

“If they don’t want me, then I go somewhere else to win trophies because that is what I do.”

England boss Gareth Southgate has also been mentioned as a successor to Ten Hag but his future won’t be decided until after the European Championship.