Brentford manager Thomas Frank has been linked with the Manchester United job amid ongoing doubts about Erik ten Hag’s future, though it sounds like some of the players wouldn’t fancy him
Manchester United players reportedly believe Thomas Frank would be “eaten alive” in the dressing room if he were to replace Erik ten Hag.
The Brentford manager is one of several names being linked with the Old Trafford job, with ten Hag seen as a likely candidate for the sacking following United’s disastrous start to the season. Thomas Tuchel was thought to be the favourite, especially after meeting with Red Devils minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe in the summer, but was ruled out after taking on the England job.
That would leave Frank competing with Ruud van Nistelrooy, Gareth Southgate and Graham Potter, all of whom are reportedly being considered as possible successors if ten Hag is sacked. But according to former Premier League star Don Hutchison, Frank may not be a particularly popular choice for some players.
“I won’t name any names, but I spoke to a Manchester United player about a fortnight ago and we were talking about who to replace [ten Hag],” Hutchison, 53, told BBC Radio 5 Live. “I spoke to Thomas Frank and he said, ‘He’ll be eaten alive in that dressing room.'”
Hutchison’s claims came just hours before Frank’s Brentford face ten Hag’s United at Old Trafford. The Red Devils started the weekend in 14th place and had won just two of their first seven Premier League games. Brentford, meanwhile, are two points behind 12th-placed United
Franck, reportedly one of four managers being considered by Chelsea to replace Mauricio Pochettino this summer, has been at Brentford since 2018. In his second full season he has led the Bees to promotion to the Premier League and a top half finish in 2022/23.
Hutchison continued that the fact that Frank was sacked internally “sums up” the ongoing issues at United. “When you don’t accept having a manager or a coach like Thomas Frank to organise you, you’re going to have problems.
“Because that’s how you see it as a fan. It doesn’t matter if your team is losing every week, as a fan what you want to see is a team organised but at United that’s not the case and the players are running for the badge and they’re not.”
Hutchison also suggested ten Hag was not the right man for the job, dismissing the Dutchman’s claims that United were “moving in the right direction”. He said: “How does he motivate his players to run fast and be organized?
“[Ten Hag] said it quite defiantly today: ‘We’re still going in the right direction’. So they’re 14th in the league, they’ve yet to win in Europe, they have a minus-three goal difference and just one win from their last six Premier League games, so how can this be going in the right direction?'”
Hutchison played in English football for almost two decades. The former Scotland midfielder, who made 26 appearances for the club, had notable spells with Liverpool, West Ham, Everton and Sheffield United. He finished his career in 2009.
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