Dubai: Former Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur striker Teddy Sheringham has tipped Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino to replace Jose Mourinho at Old Trafford.
The Red Devils are currently eighth in the Premier League with six wins from 12 matches under Mourinho, while the entertaining Spurs are fourth with nine wins — having just missed out with three top three finishes.
“Mourinho has accumulated fantastic players, but no one seems to be playing at the top of their game,” said Sheringham, speaking to Gulf News to promote the Christmas Question of Sport celebrity golf day at the Address Montgomerie on December 6.
“I think Man United need someone like Pochettino. I know people will say he hasn’t won anything yet so why would you swap him for a manager that has, but it all depends on what you want.
“Mourinho gets results and wins trophies. Do you want that, or do you want to play attractive football and not get results?
“If you play attractive football and get results then you’ve got Pep Guardiola. It’s hard to look across the city when Man City are playing so well and United are hanging on.
“Mourinho looks at his opponents, quashes their best assets and then tries to win, while Man City and Pochettino don’t do that. They play to the best of their abilities.
“It looks like Pochettino is getting things right at Tottenham, but you could have said that for the last couple of seasons and they’ve still fallen short.”
Sheringham played for Spurs from 1992 to 1997 and 2001-2003, either side of a treble-winning spell at United.
“Tottenham fans will probably have a go at me for trying to get Pochettino out, but what can you do? He’s a very good manager and if he’s not winning things where he is, he’s going to get unhappy.
If that happens and he moves on, will it open the floodgates for Harry Kane and Dele Alli to leave? “They all want to go to the next level, have had their near misses for two or three years now, so this year they need to win something,” he said of Spurs.
“It’s going to be difficult after so many players played in the World Cup from Tottenham, so maybe they can hold on to their players and go into their new stadium at the start of next season and have a real go then.
“But that means going another season without winning anything this year, and would the best players still stay, especially if there are no new players coming in?
“They need to start winning something to keep supporters happy, to keep the manager happy and keep the players happy.”
Sheringham will feature in the Christmas Question of Sport celebrity golf day alongside fellow former United star Dwight Yorke, Rangers legend Ally McCoist and Pakistan cricket legend Waqar Younis.
Golf from noon until 5pm costs Dh600 with the sports quiz to follow from 7pm to 2am costing Dh650, or Dh999 to attend both. Contact ben@itsjustfootball.com for details or call 055-553-2619.
