Express. Home of the Daily and Sunday Express.
Man Utd given Real Madrid warning in battle to appoint Mauricio Pochettino
MANCHESTER UNITED have been told they may have to act fast if they want Mauricio Pochettino as their next permanent manager.
Spurs: Madrid will rival Man United for Pochettino warns Burley
Interim manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has had a fine start in his role at Manchester United, winning his first five matches in charge in the Premier League and FA Cup.
However, Tottenham boss Pochettino remains the favourite to get the job in the summer.
Pochettino fuelled speculation over his future on Monday at his pre-match press conference ahead of Tuesday’s Carabao Cup semi-final first leg against Chelsea.
The Argentine admitted Tottenham, who did not sign any players last summer, need to spend more if they want to compete with the top teams.
Do you know what, United better be quick. There’s a guy at Real Madrid who’s struggling a bit at the moment, Santi Solari
“The other day I saw a stat that in the last 10 years in England & Europe how the teams were spending money,” Pochettino said.
“I think we were on the bottom.
“Of course we’re doing a fantastic job but if we want to be real contenders we need to operate in a different way in the future."
ESPN FC pundit and former Chelsea midfielder Craig Burley has warned United they may not be the only team interested in Pochettino though.
Burley reckons Real Madrid, who have previously been linked with Pochettino, may once again change manager in the summer.
Santiago Solari only got the Real job last November but Los Blancos are still languishing in fifth in La Liga.
Burley reckons Pochettino’s comments are starting to open the door for a move away from Tottenham.
“I remember a couple of weeks ago when we had this discussion and I said there’s one guy that can put and end to this and it’s Pochettino,” he said.
“He could make a statement and say I’ve got no interest in the Man United job.
“Or you could phrase it differently and say ‘I’ve got no interest in the United job as long as we get the funds here to go with the best’.
“And effectively, that’s now what he’s saying, which I think is the first step.
“Do you know what, United better be quick.
“There’s a guy at Real Madrid who’s struggling a bit at the moment, Santi Solari.”