Gareth Southgate is reportedly Manchester United’s top target to replace Erik ten Hag (Picture: Getty)
Former Liverpool defender Glen Johnson says Gareth Southgate has proven himself to be a ‘top manager’ and believes the Reds should strongly consider hiring the England boss should he become available.
The Merseyside giants are on the hunt for Jurgen Klopp’s successor after the German stunned the footballing world back in January with an announcement confirming that this will be his final season at the helm.
Ex-Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso is the bookmakers’ favourite to take over the reins from Klopp in the summer, with the Spaniard’s Bayer Leverkusen side sitting ten points clear at the top of the Bundesliga table.
But Bayern Munich are expected to provide fierce competition for Alonso as they search for Thomas Tuchel’s replacement and Liverpool have been forced to draw up a shortlist of alternatives.
The likes of Ruben Amorim, Roberto De Zerbi and Julian Nagelsmann have all been mooted as potential options, however, Johnson feels his former club should weigh up a move for Southgate.
The Three Lions head coach, whose contract is due to expire in December after the European Championships, has reportedly been identified as Manchester United’s top target should results spiral and Erik ten Hag lose his job.
Asked if Liverpool should rival United for Southgate, Johnson told 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 believes Liverpool should consider ‘top manager’ Southgate (Picture: Getty)
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.
Asked whether Southgate could be a success at United, Johnson told 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.
Southgate’s England contract expires in December (Picture: Getty)
‘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.’
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Southgate has been keen to distance himself from speculation linking him with United, branding the rumours ‘completely disrespectful’ ahead of England’s friendly with Brazil.
‘I’m the England manager, I have got one job basically. To try and deliver a European Championship. Clearly before that, we have two important games this week,’ he told reporters.
‘Secondly, Manchester United have a manager and I think it is completely disrespectful there is any speculation over a manager’s place.’
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