Which managers could fit Manchester United and Tottenham if needed this season?

Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur face each other in the Premier League this weekend, with pressure ramping up on their new managers, Michael Carrick and Roberto De Zerbi respectively, after poor starts to the season. Winless Spurs have won just two points from a possible 15 and sit rock-bottom in the Premier League, while 12th-placed United have won once, drawn twice and lost twice. De Zerbi was strongly backed by Spurs in the transfer market this summer -- to the tune of over £300 million -- and was appointed on a five-year contract only six months ago. But his expansive, collective-based style of play isn't easy or quick to implement, and his only previous experience of a similar high-pressure environment came at Marseille, where a promising start deteriorated amid internal and external tensions. Meanwhile Carrick, who is still young in managerial terms and sealed a Champions League spot last season, is not as tied to a single style as his rival, so if the need arises, United can resort to deeper defending, worry less about possession, and hit opponents in transition. And though a more pragmatic model can be a source of criticism at Old Trafford, it has proven to be a tried and tested tool in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era to keep the project afloat. Making a managerial change just a handful of games into the season appears premature, but football tends to write its own script and the loser (or both, if it ends in a draw) will certainly be subjected to increased speculation over their position once the dust settles. Last season, both clubs came under fire for hanging on to their previous managers -- Ruben Amorim and Thomas Frank -- for too long, and this will inevitably play on the minds of those at board level now. But in a mid-season managerial market not exactly abundant with credible or safe options, who could United or Spurs turn to if needed? Eddie Howe, 48, Unattached Ostensibly the No. 1 target for both teams if things go south. While Howe may not come with a guarantee of winning major trophies, he is a safe choice who could improve either side thanks to his extensive Premier League experience and proven ability to cope in a high-pressure environment at Newcastle United. Those skills may seem low on the checklist for some fans, but they truly matter when appointing a manager at clubs of a certain magnitude. Tactically, Howe is reasonably pragmatic and wouldn't require an extensive rebuild. He's shown he is resourceful, happy to build his approach around an opponent's weaknesses, and is ruthless enough to concede spells of possession if need be. Yet, under the right circumstances, his teams are also able to control games, disrupt the opposition buildup through intensive pressing, and outplay opponents through combination play, changes of tempo and targeted overloads on the flanks. One caveat to hiring him is Howe's stated desire to take a break from football, so the timing could be paramount. Best fit: Tottenham. One of his main midfield orchestrators from Newcastle, Sandro Tonali, is already at Spurs, and could benefit from clearer responsibilities, which Howe has proved capable of instilling. The London club also appear to have more of the athleticism, technical quality and midfield mobility that Howe tends to favor, which would make it easier for him to make his mark. Antonio Conte, 57, Unattached Though hiring the former Juventus, Inter Milan, Napoli, Chelsea and Spurs head coach might look a nonstarter on paper, there are aspects of his skill set that could make him a fascinating choice for Manchester United. Few can rival Conte when it comes to transforming a struggling, incomplete side into a functioning unit within a short timeframe. And while the experienced, multiple title-winning Italian has shown more tactical flexibility over recent seasons -- especially at Napoli -- the remains of Ruben Amorim's squad (built with a back-three and wing-backs in mind) may also be of use to Conte if he chooses to continue with his 3-5-2. Labeled unfairly (probably due to his Juventus past) as a "negative" coach, Conte is not one to press for the sake of pressing and the defensive structure must be in order before his players are unleashed in other departments. Yet his best sides -- detailed understanding of roles, collective shape and width are non-negotiables -- can be enthralling to watch, as they attack with conviction through virtually any player in the team bar the center backs. However, his next club would need a strong hierarchy above him that can "handle" him. As such, he's less naturally suited to the modern, highly collaborative head-coach model, surrounded by a large specialist staff, sports-science departments, data analysts and layers of technological input. Conte is an obsessive tactician in his own right, but his methods and working style remain more traditional and self-contained. Indeed, in his past two jobs his combustible nature and single-mindedness have overshadowed his success to a certain extent. But in the right setup, he's clearly capable of turning a club's fortunes around. Best fit: Manchester United. While a return to Spurs (he left after two years in 2023) is highly unlikely, it's conceivable that Conte would be considered -- with caution -- at United in the event of a change. Few managers come with a more pronounced "plug-and-play" concept. Arne Slot, 48, Unattached Despite an underwhelming second season at Liverpool, after he won the Premier League in his first, a move to Manchester United is off the table, given the teams' rivalry. However, sources told ESPN that Slot was a serious contender for the Spurs job previously, before they settled on Ange Postecoglou in 2023, and under an entirely different regime it's possible he could be tempted. The best version of Slot's sides control possession, press aggressively and attack with pace. While there are certain similarities in how De Zerbi uses his center backs and deep midfielders to build and evade pressure, certain tweaks when it comes to spacing and distances would have to be implemented. That could work at Spurs -- with new signings Tonali and Mateus Fernandes capable of dividing those responsibilities from deep -- while the No. 10 role further forward, in which Dominik Szoboszlai prospered during Slot's first season at Anfield is crucial and would have to be weighed up between James Maddison, Xavi Simons and Dejan Kulusevski. The key here is to find the balance between creativity, movement in the attacking box, and off-ball work. Best fit: Tottenham. While not yet evident in terms of results, there's enough depth, quality, energy and pace in the Spurs squad for Slot to build on his game model. Ernesto Valverde, 62, Unattached Few can match the 62-year-old for coaching pedigree. Valverde left Athletic Club at the end of last season following a third stint which came 2½ years after winning back-to-back titles with Barcelona from 2017-2019. Valverde's playing style balances possession dominance with quick attacks in transition, often built around speedy wingers and attacking full backs. He likes to build his teams on the basis of a strong defensive setup -- though that uncharacteristically unraveled during his final season at Athletic Club -- and enough pragmatism to adapt his approach to the quality within in his squad. In turn, this makes for consistent results and teams that are rarely outsmarted. What makes his candidacy for Spurs or United less likely, however, is that his craftsmanship has gone somewhat under the radar outside Spain (and Greece, where he had two positive spells with Olympiacos). For better or worse, these days it's unlikely that a foreign head coach would be introduced to the Premier League at such an advanced point in his career. Best fit: Manchester United. Valverde tends to rely on fast, direct wingers who constantly look to stretch the opposition or take players on (rather than the playmaking kind), with much of the organizational responsibility in the attacking half coming from a box-to-box No. 8 or No. 10 behind the striker. He is also less dogmatic than many other coaches about insisting that his center backs dictate the build-up from deep. That may well suit United, given that this is not an area in which their defenders are particularly strong. Julian Nagelsmann, 39, Unattached Once seen as arguably the most intriguing head coach of his generation, Nagelsmann's standing has dropped following his somewhat controversial exit at Bayern and a Germany spell that ended after being knocked out by Paraguay in the World Cup round of 32 this summer. On the other hand, the young manager has learned a lot from those two experiences and is arguably better prepared to take over a top Premier League club now than he was on leaving RB Leipzig five years ago. Nagelsmann's main attributes -- his ingenuity and lateral thinking -- may also be viewed, to a certain point, as his downsides. Though his attacking ideas are captivating -- central cohesion, multiple forward passing options, positional fluidity paired with coordinated attacks with the ball -- the tactical flexibility he offers his players, along with the occasional unexpected quirk, can tip over into confusion. On the one hand, his obsessive attention to detail will improve some players, but it may confuse others. This is particularly relevant in the Premier League, where most teams tend to resort to a balanced approached in order to mitigate mistakes caused by the frantic intensity. Best fit: Tottenham, but it's close. He would certainly feel at home at Spurs, as the club have invested heavily in football science over the past years, but while Nagelsmann's playing style is closer to that of De Zerbi than Carrick, it also entails substantial work on the training ground. Would he be given that kind of time midway through the season? And as the German likes to push a full back or an extra midfielder further forward to support the buildup, it also raises the question of how the defensive structure -- especially at Manchester United -- would handle a game model that borders on the experimental. Other options Kieran McKenna, 40, Unattached While his prior connection to both clubs' academies is unquestionably alluring, McKenna is still likely to be viewed as a risky appointment. His five-year stint at Ipswich Town in his first senior management role was formidable and his name will undoubtedly feature on some prestigious shortlists, but his next Premier League job is more likely to happen in a more stable environment, rather than being parachuted into a giant club in crisis. While there are no reasons to doubt his coaching abilities, the pertinent question is whether he has accumulated the experience required to steady a massive club under severe pressure. Francesco Farioli, 37, FC Porto Ironically, Farioli has Manchester United's minority owners Ineos to thank for catapulting him into a top-five league as he was brought to French Ligue 1 side Nice from Alanyaspor in Turkey in 2023. Since then, he spectacularly failed to win the 2024-25 Eredivisie title with Ajax -- despite holding a nine-point lead with five matches remaining -- but has more than redeemed himself following a Portuguese title win with Porto. According to Portuguese media reports, the young Italian has a €15 million release clause that applies in the transfer windows and €20 million outside it.