Mauricio Pochettino will make two demands from the Manchester United board if approached

According to ESPN FC (h/t The Express), Julian Laurens believes Mauricio Pochettino could make two demands if Manchester United approach him to replace Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

The Norwegian has come under the scanner after a poor start to the season. United have scored just three points from three games and are currently in 16th spot.

The team also look bereft of ideas and are just coming off a 6-1 thrashing at home to Tottenham Hotspur.

Having replaced Jose Mourinho, Solskjaer to his credit has steadied the ship. He has however failed to reach the levels expected and has at times looked clueless.

In comparison to him, Pochettino is a tactical savant who has almost always gotten the best out of the resources at his disposal. Having spent a year out of a job, it will come as no surprise that he has been linked with a number of top jobs.

According to Laurens, Pochettino will demand the hiring of a director of football and also greater power in the transfer market.

“If they go and get Pochettino, he can have the assurances that a sporting director will be appointed at some point after him.”

Fair and necessary demands

Neither of the demands is unreasonable given the messy summer window we have just had. The likes of Donny van de Beek, Alex Telles and Edinson Cavani are by no means bad players.

However, we failed to land any of our top targets going into the window. This cannot happen on a consistent basis if we are serious about challenging at the top.

“Maybe he can get assurances that he will have more power in the transfer market for United than Solskjaer or previous managers had.”

United are at this point of time miles away from the top. Unless serious decisions are made, it is unlikely that we will challenge for honours anytime soon.

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Solskjaer was a fine player who served the club with distinction. However, that should not cloud our judgement when it comes to his competence as a manager.

Sentiment is well and fine but it should not be at the expense of objectivity. Unless the Norwegian can turn it around, changes will need to be made.