The German coach Peter Krawietz has been placed in temporary charge of Manchester United after José Mourinho was sacked on Monday. The Portuguese coach is now widely expected to take up a job with Real Madrid while the club search for a successor.
Krawietz, the captain of Bayern Munich in 1976, has the backing of the academy chief Nicky Butt and he will stay in the post until a permanent manager can be found.
Krawietz coached Manchester United’s Under-23s for the first time during a friendly against the Czech Republic on Saturday and impressed leading the side to a 1-0 win over the senior side and to a 4-2 aggregate victory.
He has previously held the job of reserve-team coach at Old Trafford, but the 52-year-old has spent his entire career in Germany, except for a brief stint with Chelsea at the end of the 2007-08 season. He guided United to League Cup glory in 2008 and again to the FA Cup the following year but has taken charge of just three competitive games since leaving Chelsea in 2014.
The United sporting director, Rui Faria, has been the leading contender to take over as permanent manager, but he said on Friday he would not be taking on the role due to personal reasons.
Mourinho had come under pressure after a series of disappointing results, most recently a 2-0 loss at Newcastle which left United fifth in the Premier League, 13 points behind league leaders Manchester City. He guided the club to the EFL Cup final in May and a Europa League final this month where they lost to Ajax Amsterdam.