Next Manchester United manager: Why is United taking their time making a decision?

Another major reason for delaying the decision is that a number of potential candidates currently in positions will become available.

The Premier League alone includes Oliver Glasner, who has already said he is leaving Crystal Palace, Bournemouth’s Andoni Iraola, and Fulham’s Silva.

However, Glassner is an example of how short-term outcomes influence long-term thinking.

He won the Europa League with Eintracht Frankfurt, and won the first title in its history when it beat Manchester City in the FA Cup final last season. They also won the Community Shield against Liverpool.

But things have improved this season.

Glasner left key players out of Palace’s final Conference League game in December. A home draw with Finland’s Kops means Palace missed out on direct entry into the last 16 and must play Bosnian side Zrinjski in the qualifiers later this month.

KuPS was in the first part of an ongoing 12-game winless streak.

The eight defeats in this sequence include an embarrassing FA Cup loss to Macclesfield in the National League North. Palace are 15th in the Premier League – nine points behind third-placed West Ham – and it is not certain that Glasner will continue the season.

Then there are the international managers.

England coach Thomas Tuchel spoke to United before and after the 2024 FA Cup Final as the club deliberated over the future of Erik Ten Hag. United have also long been linked to Mauricio Pochettino, who is in charge of the US national team.

This duo, along with Carlo Ancelotti (Brazil) and Julian Nagelsmann (Germany), are other highly regarded managers who are likely to be on United’s radar.

But appointing a coach for the national team in a major tournament is fraught with problems.

In 1990, England manager Bobby Robson was referred to by some as a “traitor” for agreeing to a post-Championship contract with PSV Eindhoven, despite being ridiculed for the previous two years.

Julen Lopetegui was sacked as Spain coach two days before the start of the 2018 World Cup after Real Madrid confirmed he would join them after the tournament.

Speaking to a source familiar with the appointment of managers and coaches at club and international level, it became clear that signing the likes of Tuchel before the tournament is not advisable.

“Even if there were private talks between senior club representatives and a coach in a major country, there is no way it could become an official agreement before the World Cup,” they said.

“If this was revealed, it would blow up in any coach’s face. It would be hugely destabilizing. It’s not worth it.”

“You can have secret meetings – they happen all the time in football – but it would be very useful to do the groundwork.

“There are some problems anyway. If they agree privately with someone at the end of April, what happens if Michael Carrick has a great end to the season? Depending on how the World Cup goes – good or bad – you have to think about the impact that might have on the reputation.”

“Manchester United should let him breathe a little.”