Former Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez would reportedly be ready to become the manager of Manchester United immediately should the opportunity present itself.
Manchester United produced another toothless performance against Brentford as Ruben Amorim’s men fell to their third Premier League defeat of the season after just six games.
After a 15th place finish in the Premier League last season and a spending spree of more than £200 million in the summer, fans would’ve been hoping to see rapid improvement this season.
However, the Reds have only managed 7 points from 6 Premier League games and also suffered an embarrassing exit in the Carabao Cup to League Two outfit Grimsby Town.
While United’s public stance is still that they stand behind Amorim, pressure on the Portuguese manager is building with links to potential replacements now gaining momentum.
Former Barcelona keen on United job
Former Barcelona player and manager Xavi Hernandez is said to be very keen on taking over at Old Trafford, Fabrizio Romano reported in a recent YouTube video following United’s 1-3 loss at the Gtech Community Stadium in West-London.
“Xavi is studying the Premier League, Xavi is monitoring the Premier League and Xavi would go immediately to Man United, even without European football,” Romano says as he talks about the Spaniard’s desire to move to England.
Xavi is also on Saudi Pro League Al Ittihad’s shortlist following the dismissal of former United player Laurent Blanc as manager, Romano reports.
Xavi has been out of a job since leaving Barcelona in June 2024. Xavi won La Liga with the Spanish giants, and prior to that, he enjoyed a successful reign in the middle-east with Qatari club Al-Sadd.
Amorim on borrowed time?
Ruben Amorim’s tenure at Old Trafford has been nothing short of disastrous. United have stumbled to a mere 34 points from 33 Premier League games with Amorim in charge. United enjoyed a fairly exciting Europa League campaign last season, but fell to a defeat in the final against Tottenham Hotspur.
Almost a year into the project and having now spent around £250 million, significant progress would’ve been expected. However, it feels like every time you think United take a step forward, they immediately take three steps backwards.
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Amorim maintains his belief that his system is not the issue, but there are tactical problems that have been visible for the entirety of his tenure and he has failed to address them. Using the central centre-back, which is almost always Matthijs de Ligt or Harry Maguire, in midfield in the first phase of build-up makes central progression almost impossible.
The 5-2-3 shape out of possession almost always leads to the opponent having a massive overload in the centre of the park and that has been exploited by almost every team United have come up against since Amorim took over. United always look more stable in a 5-4-1 when Amorim uses that shape, but he rarely does.
These are basic tactical flaws that Amorim could address without making major changes to the shape. His reluctance to do so is simply baffling and will eventually cost him his job, should he continue to ignore those issues.
Having been backed significantly in the market and with only one game a week while having had an entire pre-season with the squad, Amorim is running out of excuses. He needs to find a way to win games consistently, and he needs to do it fast.
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