Roy Keane and Paul Merson agree on Erik ten Hag verdict as Man United line up ex-Chelsea boss

Roy Keane and Paul Merson both believe that Graham Potter is a better manager than Erik ten Hag, who faces an increasingly uncertain future at Manchester United. Sir Jim Ratcliffe has been eager to acquire a stake in the Red Devils since his bid to buy Chelsea last year failed.

The British billionaire made a £4.25 billion offer for the west London outfit, but his proposal was ruled out by Raine Group, who had already named the Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital consortium as the preferred bidder. Speaking to The Times in August 2022, just a couple of months after the Blues' takeover, a spokesman for Ratcliffe confirmed that he would be open to buying United from the Glazers.

According to The Sun, the Ineos owner buy a 25 per cent stake in the Red Devils as early as next week and immediately take over football operations. The report states that Ratcliffe's first big call could be sacking Erik ten Hag and replacing the Dutchman with Graham Potter.

The Sun add that the 71-year-old has already met with the former Chelsea manager regarding the first-team head coach role at Old Trafford. Ironically, Merson urged United to appoint Potter in September 2022 before Keane branded the Englishman a better gaffer than ten Hag a month later after his bright start in west London.

«I think it was a really strange decision to sack Tuchel, but Graham Potter is a manager I really like,» said Merson in his column for Sportskeeda last year. «Working at this level is a different ball game, but Potter has shown in his time with Swansea City and Brighton that he's more than capable of creating teams that can go toe-to-toe with the best in the business.

»I've said before that Manchester United should have got him ahead of Erik ten Hag and I stand by