After weeks of agony for Manchester United fans, the news that they were all waiting for came in. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was fired as United coach. This came after an embarrassing loss to Watford, a team that is in a relegation battle. The Norwegian legend was given plenty of time to get the squad in order but proved to be incompetent. His best player, Cristiano Ronaldo, gave him a lot of outs previously in the season, but his still time came to an end. Now is the time to look at three possible replacements for Solskjaer.

Manchester United candidates to replace Ole Gunnar Solskjaer

1. Zinedine Zidane (last club: Real Madrid) 

This is an obvious one. The Frenchman is the first coach in the history of the Champions League to win three titles in a row. While his only employment came with Real Madrid, Manchester United would be happy to take a chance on him in the Premier League. His record is something many more experienced coaches can be very jealous about.

Other than the three Champions League trophies, Zidane also led Madrid to two La Liga titles, two Supercups, two FIFA Club World Cups, and two UEFA Super Cups. It is an impressive tally for a coach who led Real Madrid for just five years altogether. In comparison, Manchester United alone, since Zidane took over Madrid in 2016, won only three titles, two domestic cups, and a Europa League in 2016-17.

In terms of pure fit with the squad, Zidane fits in perfectly. The Manchester United squad, as mentioned above, is led by Ronaldo, who had his best Real Madrid years under Zidane's leadership. They never had any issues and were very fruitful in terms of success.

Additionally, Zidane is known as one of the best managers in world football in terms of man-management. That aspect is incredibly needed on this United squad, as many players need to be utilized better and need a ready ear for their personal issues. Zidane is the absolute best fit, so United should be pursuing him with everything they have.

2. Andrea Pirlo (last club: Juventus) 

This might be controversial, but Pirlo was not given the proper chance with Juventus. With Manchester United, Pirlo could really prove that he is a good manager after all.

Of course, it is understandable that there might be reservations from fans about the Italian legend. He did, after all, stop Juventus' domination over Italian football. However, one thing must be clear: that Juventus team, now with Max Allegri, is still struggling. Ronaldo leaving did not help, obviously, but it could not have made that much of an impact that the team is now completely out of the championship picture.

An important aspect to be considered here is that the Manchester United squad is beaming with midfield potential. Paul Pogba, Bruno Fernandes, and Donny van der Beek, to name a few, could be a formidable midfield, and leadership from the bench from a legendary midfielder like Pirlo could be crucial there. While it is completely understandable for Manchester United to go in the direction of experience and proven success, Pirlo should not be completely taken out of the picture.

It is important to realize here that Manchester United simply does not have the appeal it once had. Thus, this opening is not going to get the absolute top of European coaches asking their current teams to let them go. Taking a risk on Pirlo could be what turns the tide around completely. Additionally, if he does get hired and he is a success, it would be a major bragging right for United owners, who need something at this time where fan confidence is low.

3. Erik ten Hag (current club: Ajax) 

If Manchester United wants to play football that brings fans to Old Trafford, then Erik ten Hag should be their focus. While both Zidane and Pirlo can be good solutions, their style of football is not something many fans enjoyed. Real Madrid fans, even in the midst of the Champions League three-peat, complained that Zidane does not force attractive football, while Juventus fans are not shy to tell you that Pirlo was unable to get them excited to watch the Old Lady.

Meanwhile, ten Hag's Ajax club is mesmerizing to watch at times, and statistics do not lie. His Ajax tenure started in 2017, and his team has scored an incredible 499 goals in just 184 games. If you do the math, that is 2.7 goals per match. This season, this high-powered club has scored 51 times in all competitions, including 37 goals in 12 games in the Dutch championship. Contrast that to Manchester United, who put up 20 in the same amount of games. These statistics are amazing and are proof of the total football that Ajax is playing under ten Hag.

Obviously, the two teams are in different levels of competition. Whereas Ajax is playing in the Netherlands, Manchester United has stronger competition in the Premier League, but the style of play is vastly different. With talented attackers and amazing midfielders, United should be scoring way more than a lowly 20 goals in 12 games, and that is where ten Hag can come in and completely change the situation.

Hopefully, for the United faithful, the board will give ten Hag a ring in the upcoming deliberations for the new coach.