Erik ten Hag "on thin ice" as Man Utd identify two potential replacements

Manchester United have identified two potential replacements for Erik ten Hag, it has been claimed.

The Red Devils boss is under severe pressure at Old Trafford, following consecutive 3-0 defeats to bitter rivals Manchester City and Newcastle.

The club sit eighth in the Premier League table, some nine points adrift of first-placed Tottenham Hotspur. While their European form hasn't been any better, suffering defeat in two out of their opening three Champions League matches.

As a result, Ten Hag is thought to be on "thin ice", according to The Times, after leading the club to their worst start to a campaign in 61 years.

The report adds that Sporting Lisbon boss Ruben Amorim and Zinedine Zidane have been selected as a potential replacement.

But while plenty is known about Zidane, having previously led Real Madrid to Champions League glory, little is known about Amorim. So, who is the 38-year-old loved by Pep Guardiola?

Who is Ruben Amorim?

Amorim played as a midfielder before entering management, notably racking up 95 appearances for Portuguese giants Benfica.

He then started his managerial career at Casa Pia in 2018, before joining Braga B.

He was later promoted to the first team, and was appointed by Sporting Lisbon in 2020.

He has been in charge of the Portuguese side since and led them to their first league title in 19 years during the 2020/21 campaign.

While he recorded an impressive victory over Arsenal in the Europa League last season.

What has been said about him?

Speaking about Amorium ahead of last season's Champions League second-leg tie against RB Leipzig, Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola described to the Portuguese manager as "one of the best".

With the aggregate score locked at 1-1, the City boss said (quotes via Tribal Football), "A year ago we won by five in Lisbon at this stage of the Champions League and they said 'how bad Sporting is'.

"What a poor team. They had won the league. From my point of view their coach is one of the best at the moment. His team it was very, very good. Do you know what happened there? Five opportunities, five shots, five goals. It was 100%.

"How good is the coach, huh? This year we had chances, we drew with Leipzig and they say that Manchester City is a disaster."

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Topics: Erik Ten Hag, Football, Manchester United, Premier League, Sporting Lisbon, Pep Guardiola

Joe Adams

Joe is a Journalist for SPORTbible with a primary focus on football. He has previously covered a number of other sports including boxing, rugby and F1. Wishes he was born left-footed.

@joeadamsjourno