Former Aston Villa captain among favourites to succeed sacked Erik ten Hag at Manchester United

Gareth Southgate is one of several names being linked with the newly vacant hot seat at Man Utd after ten Hag was relieved of his duties on Monday morning.

Ruud van Nistelrooy, ten Hag’s assistant since the start of the season, is set to take to the reigns in the interim but United will be searching around for a long-term successor.

Southgate, who left his role as England head coach in July after eight years at the helm, could make a return to club management in the near future. The 54-year-old made 235 appearances for Villa as a player between 1995 and 2001.

There are no reports suggesting United have approached Southgate just yet but he’s been heavily linked for several months. He’s also among the early bookies’ favourites.

Sky Bet suggests van Nistelrooy is the likeliest to get the United job permanently with a probability of 8/13. Barcelona legend Xavi Hernandez is in second at 3/1, while Southgate is listed at 4/1.

The other names high up on the list are Sporting Lisbon’s Ruben Amorim (5/1), former Bayern Munich boss Julian Nagelsmann (6/1), Brentford’s Thomas Frank (8/1), ex-Chelsea and Brighton manager Graham Potter (10/1) and Ipswich Town’s Kieran McKenna.

Whoever comes in has a very difficult job on their hands as United are currently 14th in the Premier League and look devoid of confidence. The Red Devils have also failed to win any of their opening three UEFA Europa League fixtures, making it tricky to progress in Europe.