5 managers who could take over from Louis van Gaal at Manchester United

Louis van Gaal could leave Manchester United at the end of the seasonIf Manchester United fail to finish in the Champions League slots, Louis van Gaal will most likely step down. The Dutchman hasn't had quite the success at Old Trafford as many expected and with splurging hundreds of the millions of pounds, has still been unable to steer the club in one clear direction. Fans are fed up of him and so are a bunch of players, reportedly. Yet when he departs, United will still be the kind of project that the best of managers from across the world will be attracted to. With Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp already ruled out of taking on the cape, here are five current managers who could do well if appointed at the Theatre of Dreams:

#5 Jorge Sampaoli

Having guided Chile to victory, Sampaoli has since been on the lookout for a job

Jorge Sampaoli has risen to fame in the last two seasons having guided Chile to their first ever Copa America victory on home soil. Making use of superstars in his team like Arturo Vidal and Alexis Sanchez, Sampaoli guided the team to beat global superpowers like Brasil and World Cup finalists Argentina to the title.

High-pressing game with pacy counter attacks are what his teams usually specialise in and given Manchester United are capable of playing such a kind of game – as they've shown in mutiple occasions this season – Sampaoli could be a viable coach to take over the reigns at Old Trafford.

Having resigned as the manager of the Chile team, Sampoali – who has repeatedly been linked to the vacant seat at Chelsea – could arrive almost immediately and make sure he has enough time to get his team in order. Sampoali could also attract some of the best South American talent to the club. Being Argentine, the youth academies of various Argentine clubs that produced the likes of Sergio Aguero, Gonzalo Higuain, Angel di Maria and more, could help Manchester United if the right kind of offers are made. Seeing as plenty of European sides continuously poach South America talent, Sampaoli could do Manchester United a huge favour and save millions with the right kind of scouting and addition.

#4 Ryan Giggs

The most decorated Manchester United player of all time, Ryan Giggs, would be an ideal replacement to the Dutchman, Louis van Gaal, currently in charge – especially since he's learning the trade at his own club on a day to day level by assisting the former Bayern Munich and Barcelona manager.

Giggs has already held the managerial top spot for a brief period of time after the club decided to sack then-manager David Moyes after a poor season in charge. Giggs took over as interim manager and although he couldn't have influenced the club enough – given the short period of time he was in charge – Giggs had an overly positive effect on the fans, the basis of large English clubs.

Giggs has won everything there is to win in club football at least once and knows what it feels like winning; that kind of attitude – similar to what Zinedine Zidane is bringing to Real Madrid – could greatly influence a dressing room and bring out the best in superstars.

Compared to the other names on this list, Giggs has little to no managerial experience and having said that, we still don't know the kind of tactics he'll put his team through but if he can deliver half of what he achieved as a player, he'd be more than a huge success at the club.

#3 Massimiliano Allegri

Massimiliano Allegri has already had success at big clubs like AC Milan and Juventus

Massimiliano Allegri has been on the radar for the top clubs for a while now having worked miracles at AC Milan. He won them the Scudetto after nearly 8 years and began the following season on a poor note with just 7 points in 8 games but utilising home-grown talents from his youth academy and scouts was able to guide the Milanese club back to 3^rd and finish the season in the Champions League.

Now at Juventus, he's dominating the Italian scene having already taken his relatively young squad through 15 games unbeaten. Having lost superstars in Andrea Pirlo, Arturo Vidal and rising youngster Kingsley Coman, Allegri is turning on the style getting his team to play attractive attacking football while paying equal attention to the importance of defending as a unit – slightly higher up the pitch.

At Manchester United, Allegri could really put the youth academy to the hilt making sure youngsters are promoted and get regular playing time while also ensuring that the senior more experienced players play the way he asks them to. Having spent most of his career at Italy, United will the first big European side he'd be managing but considering how he'd handled giants in AC Milan and Juventus, he wouldn't need too long to settle in at Old Trafford.

#2 Mauricio Pochettino

Mauricio Pochettino has done a marvellous job at Tottenham Hotspur

Mauricio Pochettino could easily be the manager of the season at the Premier League this season if Leicester City slip up and head in the wrong direction. Having joined North Londoners, Tottenham Hotspurs, last summer, the Argentine has gone on to carve a niche out for himself with a dynamic playing style and enforcing strict philosophies on and off the pitch.

Tottenham are currently second in the table only behind the miracle-workers of Claudio Ranieri and are currently playing highly attractive attacking football to dismantle the best of defences. Pochettino has often relied on the freedom of his attacking players to churn out the right results. At Tottenham, he's played two wide players, two creative attacking midfielders in the centre along with a number 9 and a number 10.

At Manchester United, he has the right ingredients to succeed with the same philosophy. With a midfield with the likes of Juan Mata, Michael Carrick, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Ander Herrera, Pochettino could do wonders. Wayne Rooney looks like his career is dipping and with the right midfield behind him, could regain some of the form that he's fast lost.

The experience in the Premier League is the biggest advantage Pochettino has over the others so far and that could heavily play into the minds of the Glazers and Ed Woodward who would looking for a sure shot this time around having made mistakes in David Moyes and Louis van Gaal.

#1 Jose Mourinho

Having been stripped of the 'Special One' tag, Jose Mourinho is currently without a job. He guided Chelsea to the Premier League title last year and six months later, was sacked – for the second time by the same club. For all that's happened in the months since, Mourinho still remains a big name in the managerial world for all the work he's done with the Londoners, Porto, Internazionale and Real Madrid.

With arch-rivals, Manchester City, having appointed Pep Guardiola as their manager from the next season, United are expected to make a stellar statement of intent as well and Mourinho is one constantly linked due to the history he'd had with the current Bayern Munich boss.

The style of play would come out of left field for Manchester United's players. Being using to quick passes and a steely counter attack, Mourinho will expect just the opposite. Stay back, defend and then break on the counter – something Sir Alex Ferguson and a majority of the United fan base will not want to see.

United are no normal club. They're a giant on par with the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona and they've achieved that feat not just by being successful but by being entertaining as well. Jose Mourinho might be a good manager who can read the opposition unlike anyone else but his 'negative tactics' or his 'anti-football' would put United in a bracket they wouldn't want to be in. Ultimately though, he'd still bring them success and judging by how the club have performed in recent seasons, they could use some of that success.