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Football

09th Jun 2024

Details revealed of ‘secret meeting’ between Thomas Tuchel and Sir Jim Ratcliffe

SportsJOE

Uncertainty remains over who will manage Manchester United next season.

Thomas Tuchel reportedly met with Sir Jim Ratcliffe last week where he expressed his desire to become the new Manchester United manager and outlined what he would do were he to replace Erik ten Hag at Old Trafford.

According to Christian Falk, head of football at BILD Sport, there was a meeting in Monaco last Tuesday between former Bayern Munich and Chelsea manager Tuchel and United shareholder Ratcliffe.

Falk writes that Tuchel used the opportunity to outline his plans if he were to take over the coaching position in the event of Erik ten Hag being fired.

Tuchel is said to have explained to the United co-owner how he could get United’s sporting problems like Sancho and Mason Mount back on track.

The prominent football journalist claims that Tuchel referenced Antonio Rüdiger as an example of his success in getting players with great potential back to peak performance.

The 50-year-old German left Bayern Munich after just over a season in charge, and his time there was nowhere near as successful as his period in charge of Chelsea where he won the Champions League before being sacked mid-way through the following season.

That hasn’t put off the 50-year-old, who is keen to make a return to the Premier League and reportedly has his eyes set on one particular job.

United fans have been waiting impatiently for the clubs new owners to announce a decision on the future of Erik ten Hag, who has won two trophies in just two seasons at the club.

Earlier this year, Ratcliffe told Belgian outlet De Tijd: “We have to look at the organisation of the club because it is not good at the moment.”

He added: “Take the head coach, for example, he must report directly to the CEO. That is no longer possible in a modern football organisation. We have to ensure that the right people end up in the right positions. Every person in management must be world-class. And then it is important to create a positive, supportive, friendly and high-quality environment.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe smiles and points at a camera
(Getty Images)

“That culture was missing before. Only in such an environment can you get the best out of sportsmen. If successful, the results will follow automatically. That’s the plan and I believe in it.”

Reports suggested that a decision would be made in the week following ten Hag’s triumph over Manchester City at the FA Cup final at Wembley, but no indication has been made just yet that the former Ajax boss will remain in the Old Trafford dugout next season.

Regardless of who will manage the club when the new Premier League season starts on 17th August, United seem to already be looking to strengthen their squad, just weeks after the 2023/2024 campaign ended.

The club are reportedly closing in on their first summer signing, with a deal for Everton centre-back Jarrad Branthwaite set to be completed by the end of the month.

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