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Back in the 2001/2002 season Manchester United finished in an unaccustomed third position behind Arsenal and Liverpool in the Premiership. This prompted reports that Sir Alex Ferguson had lost his edge and he was ready to retire. Eight years on and he is still manager, so what happened? Did Sir Alex change his mind? Were the reports just all media rumours? Who knows! What we do know is that Ferguson stayed and at the end of the next season United were sitting proudly back at the top of the Premiership table.
There is going to come a day however when Sir Alex does decide to retire. It could be soon, or it still could be a long way off. He will be 69 this year so he’s no spring chicken. Might the grand old age of 70 be the year he decides to go? He has come out in the past and said that he will leave United if his health or hunger for the game deteriorates, but other than this nothing has been carved in stone.
If you don’t mind a wait before your bet finishes, this is certainly a market for you. So who is in the running? Well this is one of the oldest markets on Betfair running since before 2002 and includes just about anyone you can think of. In the list of fifty possible managers we have the likes of Capello and Lippi, other Premiership mangers including Arsene Wenger, Harry Redknapp and Sam Allardyce, former United greats such as Solskjaer and Cantona as well as current United players such as Garry Neville and Ryan Giggs.
If you want to make money on football betting you might want to know who is actually a sensible bet from this list. Well the front runner for the job is Jose Mourinho, one of the best managers in the world. He has just started his new job at Real Madrid, but has a “termination” clause in his contact meaning that United can prize him away without having to pay any compensation if he wants to leave. Mourinho likes a challenge and there isn’t a challenge greater than trying to match the success of Ferguson in his 24 years at United. Mourinho is currently 4.2 at Betfair.
The other big runner for the next Manchester United manager is Everton boss David Moyes. During his time at Everton Moyes has grown and nurtured a team on a limited transfer budget and has driven them to top 10 finishes in the Premiership in successive seasons. Ferguson himself came out and said that David Moyes would be an excellent replacement for him. You can back Moyes at 6.8 at Betfair.
