Glen Johnson, who used to play for Liverpool, says Gareth Southgate has proven himself as a 'top manager' and thinks that Liverpool should strongly think about bringing in the England boss if he becomes available.
Liverpool is looking for a new manager to take over after Jurgen Kloppmade a surprising announcement in January, saying that this will be his last season in charge. The German stunned the football world back in January with an announcement confirming that this will be his final season at the helm.
Spanish former Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso is the favorite to take over from Klopp in the summer, as his Bayer Leverkusen team is currently ten points clear at the top of the Bundesliga table.
But Bayern Munich are expected to challenge Alonso as they look for Thomas Tuchel’s replacement and Liverpool have had to come up with a list of other options.
Names like Ruben Amorim, Roberto De Zerbi and Julian Nagelsmann have all been mentioned as potential options, but Johnson thinks his former club should consider Southgate.
The head coach of England, whose contract ends in December after the European Championships, has reportedly been named as the top choice for Manchester United if things go wrong and Erik ten Hag is fired.
When asked if Liverpool should compete with United for Southgate, Johnson said Betfred: ‘If he’s available in the summer, then you’ve got to look at all the options.
‘He’s done a brilliant job with England, so there’s no reason why he can’t be successful with a club like Liverpool as he’d be dealing with a similar standard of players.
‘You’d need to have the chat because you can’t just dismiss him if he’s available.’
Johnson warned Southgate that several ‘good managers’ have come and gone in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era amid speculation the 53-year-old could replace Ten Hag at Old Trafford.
When asked whether Southgate could be a success at United, Johnson said Betfred: ‘It’s an awkward one to talk about because you don’t want to go into a major tournament speculating about whether England’s manager is going elsewhere.
‘And you also don’t want to make assumptions over Erik ten Hag’s future too because he’s still the manager of Manchester United, but unfortunately that’s what happens, so we’re going to do it.
‘There have been a number of good, successful managers that have gone into the job at Manchester United and have struggled, so it wouldn’t be guaranteed success for Gareth if he was to take the job.
‘Manchester United are a huge club, with great support and on paper, they have a very good squad too.
‘A top manager like Gareth could come in, get rid of a lot of the deadwood, provide that team with a good backbone and make Manchester United successful again, however, there’s been a lot of good managers that have taken that job in recent years and have failed.'
Southgate has made it clear that he wants to separate himself from the rumors connecting him to United. He called the rumors 'completely disrespectful' before England's match with Brazil.
'I am the manager of England, and I mainly have one job. It is to attempt to win a European Championship. Of course, before that, we have two important matches this week,' he informed the reporters.
'Also, Manchester United already has a manager, and I find it very disrespectful that there is talk about a manager's position.'
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