What Howe could bring to Man Utd - and what are the challenges?

Image source, Getty Images

Image caption, Eddie Howe has been out of work since leaving Newcastle United in the summer

By

Senior football correspondent

When Sir Jim Ratcliffe became a co-owner of Manchester United in 2024, much of the narrative centred on his desire to rebuild the club around a British core.

Given the expense of buying homegrown players, and the difficulties Michael Carrick - the first permanent British managerial appointment of the Ineos era - has faced this season, perhaps Ratcliffe is rethinking.

But if Carrick fails to stop the rot and loses his job, United are already considering the merits of appointing another British coach - albeit one who is more experienced.

That Eddie Howe is a contender for a job that remains one of the most high-profile in world football isn't hard to fathom.

Speak to those who have worked alongside Howe and they describe a man whose track record of improving players is a direct result of…