There have been rumors that Thomas Frank, the manager of Brentford, may join Manchester United, a rival team in the Premier League, and take Erik ten Hag’s position. Frank has refused to call these rumors false.
In spite of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s request that he be fired, Dutch coach Ten Hag has been successful in avoiding termination over the international break. This is due to the fact that Manchester United executives Dan Ashworth and Omar Berrada have chosen to continue working with the 54-year-old coach. While Ten Hag continues to serve as manager of Manchester United, the club’s upper management may decide to make a change if the squad continues to produce results that are less than satisfactory in the coming weeks, particularly against teams such as Brentford, Fenerbahce, and West Ham United.
In the event that Ten Hag was fired, Ratcliffe’s top priority was to get Thomas Tuchel. However, the German has subsequently accepted to take over as the next England manager beginning on January 1.
A request was made to Frank to provide clarification over his future in advance of his team’s trip to Old Trafford on Saturday, which has the potential to add even more pressure to Ten Hag.
Despite the fact that the 51-year-old is having a good time at Brentford, he did not cut off his connections to Manchester United.
In an interview with talkSPORT, Frank stated, “I’ve said many times that I’m very happy at Brentford.”
In the future, who can say for sure what will take place? It’s possible that I am going to be here for a good number of years. My door is open; perhaps something will come up.
“However, first and foremost, I am extremely content, and I am simply working very hard each and every day to make the club better.”
Frank continued by saying, “It is extremely challenging to forecast the future.” Who can predict what will take place?
What is the percentage of coaches that have been with the same team for more than twelve years? The very few. Let us put it this way: [It is] the very essence of the game.
Man United’s Thomas Frank is on the shortlist
Frank is a candidate for the post that Manchester United is looking to fill, but as things currently stand, he is not at the top of the pile. TEAMtalk has received confirmation from sources that both Eddie Howe, the manager of Newcastle United, and Graham Potter, the former head coach of Chelsea, are being considered for the position of manager of Manchester United. INEOS is eager to select a British manager for the club next.
Among the two, Howe will be the more difficult to appoint since Newcastle has demonstrated with Ashworth that they would not allow its senior personnel to depart without a struggle.
In spite of the fact that Potter is a free agent, it is not yet clear whether he has sufficient credit left in his bank account following his struggles at Chelsea.
On the other hand, Frank has been doing an outstanding job at Brentford, as evidenced by the fact that he was instrumental in the Bees’ elevation to the Premier League for the very first time. Since then, they have established themselves as regulars in the top division, and they achieved a ninth-place result in the 2022-23 season.
However, in the event that Ten Hag leaves, Manchester United supporters might want a more illustrious figure to take command. Some of the names that have been brought up include Zinedine Zidane, and it has been asserted that confidential conversations are now taking place between him and Jean-Claude Blanc, the director of Manchester United.
On the other hand, Zidane will be difficult to persuade to accept the position of manager for the very first time in the Premier League.
New Antony pricing, Real Madrid conflicts, and trades involving Manchester United
In the meanwhile, it has been stated that Manchester United have reassessed the price tag on their flop signing Antony as they attempt to sell him on.
The Brazilian player has been valued as low as twenty-five million pounds in the past, but according to the Daily Mail, Manchester United is asking for forty million pounds for him.
On the other hand, the Red Devils are well aware that no team will be willing to pay that amount in January. As a result, they want to make use of Antony on loan throughout the winter season before selling him at the conclusion of the season.
In spite of the fact that it appears like Antony will be forced out of Manchester United, the club’s management is looking to bring in a new left-back who is capable of being more dependable than the injured pair of Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia.
Alphonso Davies, who plays for Bayern Munich, and Alvaro Fernandez Carreras, who played for Manchester United in the past and moved to Benfica permanently during the summer, are both players whom Manchester United are rumored to have shown interest in.
However, according to rumors in Germany, Manchester United is aware that it will be difficult to convince Davies to turn off Real Madrid’s offers and instead take a position with them.
When it comes to Fernandez, Manchester United have a buy-back clause, but the Spaniard would prefer to join with Madrid in order to return to his native country.
Ratcliffe and his teammates were able to outbid Madrid for Leny Yoro during the summer, but Los Blancos may be able to exact their vengeance by acquiring both Davies and Fernandez in the year 2025.
Most significant acquisitions made by Brentford for Thomas Frank
When compared to the top 10 most costly acquisitions that Brentford made throughout Frank’s tenure as manager of Brentford, the magnitude of the job at Manchester United would be far more than anything else that Frank has ever been in charge of.
Over the course of the previous six years, the club has consistently broken its transfer record, demonstrating that they are not hesitant to support Frank, particularly when it comes to providing his side with stability in the Premier League.
But the most significant signing that Brentford has ever made would not be able to make it into Manchester United’s top 15 in the same amount of time that Frank has been in charge, which demonstrates the different atmosphere that he would have to adjust to.
Having said that, a significant number of United’s high-priced signings have been unsuccessful, whereas Brentford has been working to develop a project that is sustainable.
