Former Manchester United and Aston Villa winger Ashley Young has urged incoming head coach Mauricio Pochettino to set out his demands with the club's owners as soon as he arrives in Manchester next week.
Young, who spent 16 seasons across three spells at the two clubs and won the Premier League, FA Cup, League Cup and Europa League at United under Alex Ferguson, Louis van Gaal and Jose Mourinho, believes United should follow the example set by Aston Villa when Pochettino takes charge at Old Trafford.
Taking a leaf out of Villa's playbook
Young pointed to how Unai Emery took full control at Aston Villa as a model for Pochettino to follow. He said: "We've had managers previously that have said, 'I'm going to be the one,' and it's not happened. Unai Emery went into Aston Villa and literally said, 'I'm taking full control. This is who I want, this is what I want, this is who I want above me, and this is how I'm going to work.'"
"The owners said, 'Take it.' And look at the success they've had. And look at what they're still having." Young added that Pochettino's pedigree, which includes consecutive top-four finishes at Tottenham Hotspur and a second-place finish as their best-ever result, means United need a manager with a big personality who can tell the owners the direction he wants to go while demanding their backing.
Concerns over funding priorities
Young fears that United's decision makers - Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Omar Berrada and Jason Wilcox - may focus more on money for off-pitch projects than on providing the right level of funding to improve matters on it. He also believes Pochettino will see a success-starved fan base he can win over.
"The fans are so critical, so dependent, and the Manchester United fans know what they've had in previous years," Young told The Overlap Daily, presented by Sky Vegas. "They know the history of the club. There's not been a manager since Sir Alex Ferguson that's won more than two trophies. Pochettino could be looking at that and thinking, yeah, this is my chance. I'm going to get this club winning trophies."
However, Young added: "But he's got to be able to get the backing from the owners and the board. And right now, I'm not sure they're going to be looking at this club thinking, 'do you know what, in January we're going to give him X amount of money to go and buy however many players', because I still think in the back of their mind they're going for a new ground."
Style of play and squad concerns
Young also said Pochettino needs to spend money to change the playing style to one that his experience tells him will help United win multiple trophies again. "You want a manager that's going to come in and get the players running. And the style that Pochettino plays is a high-pressing one. I'm not sure he's got the players there that are going to be capable of doing that," he said.
"That's why you saw Michael Carrick playing in a medium block, because he knew the players couldn't do that. Of course there's going to be a bounce [once Pochettino arrives]. You're going to see a reaction with the players. How long will that last? Only time will tell."
