Gareth Southgate's underwhelming spell as Man Utd manager - according to intriguing prediction

Gareth Southgate is now fully focused on guiding England to success at Euro 2024 - but what lies beyond the summer tournament for the Three Lions boss remains open to question.

There has been intense speculation suggesting the Euros will be Southgate’s final major tournament as England manager and the former Aston Villa and Middlesbrough defender is believed to be one name under consideration to succeed Erik Ten Hag at Manchester United if the Old Trafford hierarchy opt to part ways with the Dutchman.

Such a move would seem somewhat harsh after Ten Hag led the Red Devils to major trophies in his first two seasons in charge - and surely memories of their unexpected FA Cup Final win over Manchester City remain fresh in the mind. But Southgate to United intrigued us and we could not wait to find out how he would fare at Old Trafford. So it’s over to Football Manager 2024 as we use the in-game editor to put Southgate in charge of the Red Devils and simulated his first season.

Transfers

Firstly, the really interesting part. How did Southgate conduct himself in the transfer market as he looked to make the most of the backing handed to him by Sir Jim? Well, there was a significant spend and a few surprise departures from Old Trafford as Marcus Rashford, Antony, Mason Mount, Casemiro and Raphael Varane all joined Saudi Pro League clubs and swelled the coffers with around £177m.

Southgate wasted little time in putting that money to good use as he made a £36m move for Chelsea’s Conor Gallagher and £41m was handed over to Sporting CP as Pedro Goncalves became the latest Portuguese winger to join the Red Devils. Another Portuguese star was snapped up as Porto full-back Joao Mario was brought in for a £32m fee and RB Salzburg’s exciting youngster Oscar Gloukh completed a £17m switch.

Luke Shaw now has competition at left-back after Southgate added Monaco star Caio Henrique to his squad as the Ligue 1 club received £26m for his services. Anthony Martial, Tom Heaton and Jonny Evans all departed on free transfers along with a whole host of academy players.

FA Cup run

Now this is as curious as run as you’re likely to see. Firstly, Southgate’s side overcame a difficult third round tie at Premier League rivals West Ham United as summer signing Goncalves and Rasmus Hojlund netted in a 2-0 win at the London Stadium. An away tie at National League club Solihull Moors was next up as a much-changed United side claimed a 4-0 win thanks to doubles from Amad Diallo and Gloukh. Southgate’s side impressed once again in the fifth round as Alejandro Garnacho and Hojlund were on target in a 2-0 home victory against Arsenal - but the run ended at the quarter-final stage as an Erling Haaland brace and a Jack Grealish goal ensured Man City gained some revenge for last season’s FA Cup Final win.

Carabao Cup

Short and sweet this update - a youthful Red Devils side fell at the first hurdle with a 3-0 home defeat against a full-strength Arsenal ended one route to silverware by the time October had come around. For the record, Gabriel Jesus, Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard were all on target for the Gunners as they eased to a straightforward win at Old Trafford.

Europa League

The new look Europa League setup saw Southgate’s United handed some tricky fixtures in the league phase of European football’s secondary club competition. Here were expected wins against Qarabag, Sarajevo, Young Boys, Austria Vienna and Dinamo Butami - but there was also a draw against Real Sociedad and a rather disappointing 4-0 defeat at Feyenoord. Nevertheless, the Red Devils progressed into the knockout rounds and made their way to the quarter-finals with a 2-1 aggregate win over Roma thanks to a 2-0 first leg win at Old Trafford that was secured by a Hojlund brace.

One goal was all it took for Southgate’s men to cast aside Eintracht Frankfurt in the quarter-final as a Bruno Fernandes goal helped United to a 1-0 win in Germany before a home draw in the second leg. But the run came to an end with a semi-final defeat against Lazio as the Serie A club overturned a first leg deficit to claim a place in the final. Garnacho and Hojlund gave United a 2-1 home win in their first meeting but a brace from Danish forward Gustav Isaksen ensured it was the Italians that set up a final clash with La Liga club Athletic Bilbao.

Premier League

This is where things do get awkward. It’s probably best to break this news bit-by-bit by revealing United did not secure a return to Champions League football, nor will they compete in the Europa League. And sadly, they won’t even play in the Europa Conference League after Southgate’s first season ended with a rather disappointing eighth placed finish. United weren’t even close to Europe, ending the campaign eight points shy of seventh placed Aston Villa and ten points adrift of the top four. here were some notable wins for Southgate as Fernandes and Goncalves netted in a 2-0 victory at Liverpool in December and Hojlund netted a hat-trick in a 4-0 home win against Arsenal just two weeks later.

But there was the major blow of Man City completing a league double over Southgate’s men with a 3-1 win at the Etihad Stadium before a Julian Alvarez brace helped Pep Guardiola’s side to a 2-0 win at Old Trafford on the penultimate weekend of the season. Home defeats against Crystal Palace, Nottingham Forest, West Ham United and Brentford during the final two months of the season have also left Southgate’s job status as ‘insecure’.