In a surprising turn of events, despite the struggles faced by teams like Wolves, Crystal Palace, and Southampton, there has been a notable scarcity of managerial sackings in the Premier League so far this season.
Erik ten Hag at Manchester United is the only manager to have lost his job at this point, with Gary O’Neil, Oliver Glasner, and Russell Martin managing to hold onto their positions despite lackluster performances. While these three managers have only mustered three top-flight wins collectively, they have managed to dodge the dreaded pink slip.
However, the pressure is undoubtedly mounting on them. Crystal Palace is reportedly eyeing candidates like David Moyes and Graham Potter should Glasner fail to turn things around. Moyes is also under consideration at Wolverhampton Wanderers, though O’Neil managed to buy himself more time with a recent victory over Southampton.
Former Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan believes Moyes would be a better choice for clubs in a relegation battle compared to Ruud van Nistelrooy. Van Nistelrooy, known for his prolific goal-scoring abilities, is venturing into management and came close to taking the Burnley job before joining Manchester United as an interim coach. However, Jordan questions the quality of Van Nistelrooy’s wins at United, pointing out that they came against relatively weaker opponents.
Van Nistelrooy, eager to further his coaching career, had a promising start with PSV Eindhoven in the Eredivisie but now faces skepticism about his abilities following his brief spell at Manchester United.
In 2023, he led PSV to win the Dutch Cup final and set the stage for a future championship team under Peter Bosz, with players like Ismail Saibari and Johan Bakayoko from the youth academy.