Ferdinand comes out against Louis van Gaal

PEP Guardiola is expected to make an announcement on his future in the coming days and, with Louis van Gaal under increasing pressure, Rio Ferdinand has come out in support of a party-crashing bid for the renowned Spaniard.

The Dutchman has seen a disastrous week for the Manchester club fortunately overshadowed by the shock sacking of Jose Mourinho from Chelsea. A weak exit from the Champions League has seen them drawn against Danish minnows Midtjylland instead of the usual classic affair against the likes of Barcelona or Milan. The embarrassment was complete with a defeat to Bournemouth last weekend which topped off a winless run of five games with no end in sight. 

Former United captain and England defender Rio Ferdinand, who made 455 appearances for the club over 12 years, has now urged the club’s hierarchy to make a move for Guardiola, who recently announced he will most likely not renew his contract with German champions Bayern Munich. 

“The thing with Manchester United is that he will go to one Premier League team and won’t be going to another” Ferdinand said. “There is one chance – you have one chance to get him. He won’t go to Manchester City and then to United; he’s not going to go to Chelsea and then United. It won’t happen, so you’ve got one chance to get the best manager on the planet.”

Bitter rivals Manchester City are tipped to be the front runners for the former Barcelona manager’s signature. The ex-midfielder won 14 trophies with the Catalan club before going on to further success across Europe with Bayern.