Paul Parker: Tim Sherwood better for Manchester United than Jose Mourinho

Aston Villa v West Bromwich Albion - Barclays Premier League
Aston Villa v West Bromwich Albion - Barclays Premier League

Paul Parker, former Manchester United defender, thinks ex-Aston Villa manager Tim Sherwood would be a better fit at Old Trafford than Jose Mourinho.

Louis van Gaal, the current United manager, has been under pressure for much of the season and his future at the club has come under intense speculation, following the Red Devils’ 2-1 defeat to Sunderland last Saturday.

Former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho is widely tipped to become the next manager of United, although his potential move to Old Trafford has divided opinions among the fans and football pundits.

While there is no doubt that Mourinho is a proven winner, and when backed with loads of money, he can do wonders. At the same time, Mourinho is probably not comfortable working with youngsters / read as academy talents at the club, and therefore many fear that his appointment will harm United in the long run, as his working methods are different to the culture of this iconic club.

Fair enough. If not Mourinho, then who? Parker has come up with a bizarre suggestion: let’s give Tim Sherwood a chance. He thinks it will be a mistake to appoint Mourinho as the next United manager.

“To suggest that [Mourinho] could walk in to a crisis situation at United and turn it around is absurd,” Parker wrote in his Eurosport column.

“That’s something he’s never done in his career, and this really wouldn’t be the time to start. He’s lost a huge amount of respect in the game, and I suspect the players at United hate the idea of him taking over.

“Frankly, given how unhappy the players are right now, they’d be better off bringing in Tim Sherwood between now and the end of the season: someone to soft soap the players, give them a bit of a cuddle, get them feeling good about themselves once again.

“Sadly, as we’ve seen with Tim, those sorts of managers don’t work long term. And United need to start thinking about the long term as soon as possible, because if not they face the ultimate danger: turning into the new Liverpool.”

Well, I actually wanted to write something on his comments, but frankly, words fail me.

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