Man Utd takeover ‘slows down’ bidder’s manager search; Potter is ‘favourite’ for job over Prem boss

Lewis Oldham 25 May 2023 2:53 PM

Ex-Chelsea head coach Graham Potter is reportedly the ‘favourite’ to become Nice’s next manager but the Man Utd takeover is ‘slowing the process’.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has been vying to become Man Utd’s new owner over the past couple of months. He has been battling Sheikh Jassim and the Glazer family are expected to name their preferred bidder within the next few weeks.

Ratcliffe – the chief executive officer of INEOS – has been the owner of Ligue 1 outfit Nice since 2019.

He has attempted to gain control of a Premier League club over the past year. He tried and failed to buy Chelsea in 2022 and he has now turned his attention to Man Utd.

Ratcliffe is coming under fire at the moment as several figures at Nice are unhappy with the direction they are heading under INEOS. Captain Dante has slammed the club’s owners over their poor management of the Ligue 1 side.

“I think at some point you have to be clear in what you’re saying,” Dante said. “To maintain a project, maybe you need to speak less about objectives and work in silence to create an environment of competitors. Because the expectation is even bigger, and then after, people are frustrated.

“The best thing to do is to prepare as quickly as possible for next season in order to start it well. Do you remember how many players came in at the end of the transfer window last summer? Six left, six arrived. It’s difficult in these conditions. Simply, we mustn’t make the same errors.

“If someone wants my opinion, the earlier we organise ourselves, the better it will be. If we want to aim higher, we have to anticipate things and put the values of the organisation in place.”

Didier Digard is Nice’s current manager but he is likely to be replaced before next season. They finished fifth in Ligue 1 in 2021/22 but they are currently ninth in the table.

L’Equipe (via Get French News Now) are reporting that ‘Potter is the favourite to become the new Nice manager, but INEOS’ attempts to purchase Manchester United are slowing down the search for a new manager’.

INEOS are said to be ‘more interested’ in Brighton’s Roberto De Zerbi but it is ‘unthinkable that he would leave’ to join Nice after the Premier League club qualified for the Europa League.

Potter is ‘interested in the role’ and ‘meetings have already taken place’. But with INEOS and Ratcliffe ‘occupied by the potential purchase of Man Utd, Nice aren’t currently closing in on the English manager’.

The 48-year-old did a stellar job at Brighton between 2019 and 2022. He left the Seagulls to join Chelsea last September but he was sacked after only seven months in charge.

Manchester United Graham Potter