Big-name manager rejected chance to replace Erik ten Hag as Manchester United boss

Former Brighton manager Roberto de Zerbi is apparently vying for the Marseille post, but turned down the opportunity to succeed Erik ten Hag as Manchester United manager.
That’s according to journalist Santi Aouna via his official X account, with De Zerbi reportedly declining the opportunity to take over at Manchester United this summer.

This follows the announcement that Ten Hag will remain at Old Trafford, with Fabrizio Romano informing CaughtOffside earlier today that Fulham boss Marco Silva was also being discussed internally by the Red Devils.

According to Aouna’s post below, De Zerbi may have also been in contention.

De Zerbi to Manchester United: Was he the best man for the job?
De Zerbi performed admirably at Brighton, and it was expected that when he left the Seagulls this summer, he would pique the interest of several top clubs.

Many United fans would have been delighted to see the Italian take over from Ten Hag after the team’s terrible form under the Dutchman for much of the season, even if they ended on a high note by winning the FA Cup final against Manchester City.

It’s strange that De Zerbi isn’t in consideration for a bigger role than Marseille, but it’ll be interesting to see what he can accomplish with the Ligue 1 team, which has the ability to challenge Paris Saint-Germain.

It’s unclear why De Zerbi didn’t want the United post, but it could be a concern if they were unable to recruit someone like that and were forced to rely on Ten Hag as a last alternative after failing interviewing other candidates for several weeks.