England manager Gareth Southgate has revealed that there are two reasons why he won’t entertain talk of him joining Manchester United at the end of the season. The ex-Middlesbrough boss has reportedly been identified by Sir Jim Ratcliffe as a leading candidate to spearhead his new project at Old Trafford.
United are expected to undergo plenty of change over the summer, with fringe players set to be sold to raise funds and marquee signings expected to arrive to indicate a changing of the guard at the Theatre of Dreams.
Ratcliffe is keen to be ‘hands-on’ in his new role at United, and a shakeup in the dugout is therefore firmly on the cards. Erik ten Hag has been heavily linked with a move away from the Red Devils at the end of the season, with replacement options being shortlisted.
Graham Potter, Roberto De Zerbi and Thomas Tuchel are among those to have been linked with the potential vacancy, though Southgate is largely cited as the favourite for the role. The 53-year-old is said to be viewed as a good appointment by Ratcliffe and co, but Southgate was not keen to entertain talk of a move.
Asked about the speculation ahead of England’s clash with Brazil this weekend, he said: “There are two things from my point of view. One is I’m the England manager. I’ve got one job, to try to deliver a Euros and the second thing is Man Utd have a manager and I think it is always completely disrespectful when there is a manager in place.”
He went on to say that he didn’t have ‘time’ for the speculation, with his focus solely on helping England to end their trophy drought and win the Euros this summer.
Manchester City defender John Stones was also asked about the prospect of Southgate joining United, and thus his rivals, and how he would feel about the move. The Three Lions boss did interject to insist that the centre-back did not have to answer the question, before Stones went on to speak of how he hopes that his manager will remain in the Wembley Stadium dugout.
Southgate’s contract expires at the end of the year, though reports have speculated that the FA will make an effort to extend his stay until 2026 so that he can guide the nation into the World Cup.
