Man Utd 'already planning Mauricio Pochettino chat' as Erik ten Hag talks rumble on

Manchester United will reportedly inform the likes of Mauricio Pochettino, Julen Lopetegui and Luis Enrique if they choose to appoint Erik ten Hag as their next permanent boss.

The Ajax manager appears to be the Red Devils’ preferred candidate to succeed current interim manager Ralf Rangnick at the end of the campaign. While United were dealt a fresh blow by reports stating RB Leipzig were looking to coerce the Dutchman over to the Bundesliga, the 52-year-old is still believed to be the favourite for the United position.

Sources from Holland understand Ten Hag is seriously considering Leipzig’s ‘bank busting’ offer, in what will likely be nerve-wracking news for the Red Devils. But whatever happens, United will inform the current candidates of their fate when they do eventually appoint their new boss.

Reports from the Athletic understand this will be the final phase of their painstaking search for a new permanent manager. Rangnick took over the reins from the sacked Ole Gunnar Solskjaer - the last boss to be given the United job on a permanent basis.

The terms of the former RB Leipzig manager were that he would guide the club until the end of the current campaign on an interim basis, where he would then step aside and enter the boardroom for a two year consultancy role. Rangnick was appointed soon after United passed up an opportunity to appoint Antonio Conte, who was quickly signed by Tottenham Hotspur after the sacking of Nuno Espirito-Santo.

But despite the recent uncertainty of Ten Hag’s current future, talks are understood to still be “progressing” between the club and the Dutchman. And should they appoint the Dutchman, the club have already decided that they will personally contact Pochettino, Lopetegui and