Jurgen Klopp may be the popular choice to succeed David Moyes as Manchester United boss, but he has reiterated his commitment to Borussia Dortmund.
Moyes was sacked by the Reds less than 12 months into the six-year contract he signed last summer, bringing an end to his disastrous spell at Old Trafford. Whilst any hopes of defending their title vanished a long time ago, so too has their chances of a top-four finish and they now face the prospect of missing out on Europe altogether.
It was no surprise, then, that rumours of the Scot’s departure were initially linked the day after a 2-0 defeat at his former club Everton, which was their 11th loss of the Premier League season. These rumours were confirmed by the club on Tuesday morning, and now the search has begun to find a man capable of filling Sir Alex Ferguson’s shoes.
The choice of the supporters, according to the many resources on the internet, appears to be Klopp. The charismatic 46-year-old has emerged as perhaps the brightest young coach in Europe, having led Dortmund to back-to-back Bundesliga titles in 2011 and 2012. But it is not just his trophy collection and progress in the Champions League which has won him admirers, but also the style of play in which he has set his team up in.
There was a feeling that due to Bayern Munich’s recent domination of the game in Germany, and indeed potentially in Europe, Klopp may decide he has taken his current club as far as possible. Yet he remains under contract until 2018, and on Tuesday, he told The Guardian: “Manchester United is a great club and I feel very familiar with their wonderful fans. But my commitment to Borussia Dortmund and the people is not breakable.”
Other potential contenders include Atletico Madrid’s Diego Simeone, but the Argentine only knows limited English which would be problematic. There have even been suggestions that Jose Mourinho could be an option, but the Portuguese claimed he had no interest in the job when Ferguson retired, and it would take a huge u-turn for him to quit Chelsea to make the move to Old Trafford even if this is, as many expect, the job he dreams of.
A more likely candidate is Louis van Gaal, who has won league titles with Barcelona, Bayern Munich, AZ Alkmaar and Ajax, the latter of whom he also won the Champions League with. The 62-year-old is currently in charge of the Holland national side, but will leave after the World Cup Finals and has made no secret of his desire to work in England.
In the meantime, club legend Ryan Giggs will take control of first team affairs for the remainder of the season, starting on Saturday evening when Norwich City visit Old Trafford. Whilst there is no inclination the Welshman will be offered the job on a permanent basis, he is almost certain to form part of the new coaching team once installed.
