INEOS 'have not been in contact' with Julen Lopetegui over Man Utd job

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·16 December 2023

INEOS 'have not been in contact' with Julen Lopetegui over Man Utd job

Manchester United's poor start to the 2023/24 Premier League and Champions League season is continuing to put pressure on head coach Erik ten Hag at Old Trafford.
Ex-Wolverhampton Wanderers manager Julen Lopetegui has been reported to be 'well placed' to succeed the Dutchman in the event of a change in management, but journalist Ben Jacobs claims no contact has been made.
The Red Devils must clear up the futures of players such as Raphael Varane, Casemiro and Jadon Sancho ahead of the 2024 winter transfer window

Manchester United have not contacted Julen Lopetegui over potentially replacing manager Erik ten Hag at Old Trafford, as journalist Ben Jacobs provides GIVEMESPORT with INEOS’ stance on the situation in the dugout.

The Red Devils have endured a disastrous start to the 2023/24 Premier League campaign and have been eliminated from European competition before Christmas, finishing at the bottom of their Champions League group.

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Ten Hag hopes that the imminent arrival of INEOS chairman Sir Jim Ratcliffe as a minority shareholder will support him as pressure on his job begins to build. Man Utd hope to head into the new year in some sort of positive form, with the 2024 winter transfer window approaching.

Following Man Utd’s 3-0 Premier League home defeat to AFC Bournemouth on 8th December, pressure has seriously begun to ramp up on ten Hag, who now has endured a horrendous start to the 2023/24 season. The Red Devils are currently on course to miss out on qualification to the 2024/25 Champions League, even if England are granted a fifth representative in Europe’s premier club competition.

Meanwhile, ten Hag could not guide Man Utd out of a relatively favourable Champions League group, with the club falling out of Europe altogether. That’s because the Dutchman’s side could only muster one victory out of six games, having met Bayern Munich, Galatasaray and Copenhagen twice.

With third place securing a spot in the Europa League knockout play-off round, the Manchester giants could have prepared an assault on the continent’s second-tier competition. Alas, failure to secure more than four points from a possible 18 means that United must wait until at least the 2024/25 season to welcome European football back to Old Trafford.

Ten Hag has also seen his side make an early exit from the Carabao Cup after succumbing 3-0 at home to Newcastle United in November, having won the 2022/23 edition of the competition. Therefore, success in the FA Cup represents Man Utd’s only chance of major silverware for the current campaign, facing a favourable trip to League One outfit Wigan Athletic on 8th January.

According to Relevo, ex-Wolverhampton Wanderers manager Julen Lopetegui is ‘well placed’ to replace ten Hag if the Old Trafford outfit decide to relieve him of his duties. Meanwhile, The Sun reports that former Chelsea boss Graham Potter is being lined up to replace the Dutchman after being given the boot from Stamford Bridge in April.

Ben Jacobs on Julen Lopetegui and Graham Potter to Man Utd

Jacobs claims that names linked with the Man Utd job have been “exaggerated” and revealed there has been no contact between the club and Lopetegui. The journalist also claims that Potter is mentioned because of INEOS’ admiration for him when running the Ligue 1 outfit OGC Nice. Jacobs told GIVEMESPORT:

“The specific names have been exaggerated to an extent. For example, Lopetegui has come into the equation. There's been no contact with him. Potter gets mentioned, but the reason why he’s mentioned is because there was previous admiration on the INEOS side with regards to Nice. So, it's normal that INEOS would like Potter and have a relationship with him. But that doesn't mean that, at this stage, they're lining him or anybody up before they're even formally and legally in the door at Manchester United.”

Man Utd transfer update on the futures of Varane, Casemiro and Sancho

With the 2024 winter transfer window almost upon us, ten Hag will have to consider the future of some of his out-of-favour stars heading into the new year at Old Trafford. Transfer insider Dean Jones has recently told GIVEMESPORT (14th December) that centre-back Raphael Varane is “extremely frustrated” at the club but is unlikely to leave in January.

The Athletic reports that Man Utd risk losing Varane on a free transfer at the end of the 2023/24 season, with his contract expiring a year earlier than initially publicised. The one-time World Cup winner has a 12-month extension option in his deal. Still, the Red Devils will have to negotiate it imminently, with the defender able to sign a pre-contract agreement with clubs from abroad in January.

Meanwhile, Sports Zone claims that Paris Saint-Germain are interested in signing United midfielder Casemiro. However, Saudi Pro League giants Al Hilal have also been linked with a move for the Brazilian and could offer a contract worth over £15m.

But the twenty-time English champions are struggling to find a buyer for winger Jadon Sancho, with his reported £350,000 per-week wages putting teams off his services. Bundesliga outfit RB Leipzig are said to be keen on the former England international, but his excessive salary means a move would be difficult.