Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has expressed his concern about what the future could hold for the Red Devils should they get their next managerial appointment wrong.
With rumours of José Mourinho’s potential appointment to the Old Trafford managerial seat intensifying in the last two weeks, there is a growing sense that Dutchman Louis van Gaal could find himself out of a job in the summer.
However, legendary Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has urged the club to be cautious while making any such decision. The former England international is worried that picking the wrong manager to replace Van Gaal may begin a ‘long cycle’ that could see the Red Devils’ fortunes mirror that of arch rivals Liverpool FC.
Ferdinand is quoted by Mail Online as saying: “I think if they bring someone else in, it is a huge decision because if this doesn’t go right, it could be a long cycle.
“We don’t want to be a repeat of what Liverpool have gone through. Manchester United don’t want that long time in the wilderness of not really winning or being successful and not challenging for titles.
“That can’t afford to happen at Man United. The problem they’ve got now is who they choose.”
The 37-year-old presented the vastly experienced Mourinho and Ryan Giggs as two potential candidates for the role, saying that picking between the two different managers — and by extension, following two different philosophies — would be an extremely difficult task.
“Are they going to go for someone who has had success, who knows how to manage teams like Jose Mourinho, or will they go with someone who is already in the house like Ryan Giggs?” added Ferdinand.
“That’s the problem they have got and the questions that have to be asked. If I knew the answer to that question, I would be the CEO.”
Mourinho the necessary evil for Manchester United in their current predicament
It is fair to say that following the departures of Sir Alex Ferguson and David Gill, Manchester United have made a series of errors, the cumulative effect of which has led them to their current position — out of the Champion League before the knock-out stages and struggling to make it to the top four in the Premier League.
There are few managers better than Mourinho at getting quick results, and United are in a position where they need to do something drastic to catapult themselves to the top of English football again. The Portuguese has a win record of 66% in his 212 games in charge in England’s top flight, and boasts an impressive tally of three league titles in five full seasons in charge.
Mourinho is the necessary evil for Manchester United at the moment, and appointing any other manager in the world would be a bigger gamble than appointing the former Real Madrid boss.
