Antonio Conte can show Manchester United what they're missing

Man United chose not to hire Antonio Conte despite DESPERATE pleas from pundits and fans… now the Spurs boss can show them what they’re missing with a statement win at Old Trafford tonight

• Manchester United host Tottenham in the Premier League on Saturday evening
• Many felt United should have gone for the Italian to replace Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
• Conte and Old Trafford interim boss Ralf Rangnick have similar records so far
• But the ex-Chelsea coach has the chance to leapfrog United in the table
• There are clearer signs of progress for Tottenham than Manchester United 

When Manchester United were thrashed 5-0 at Old Trafford by Liverpool in October, the clamour for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to be sacked and replaced by Antonio Conte was defeaning.

Sportsmail‘s chief sports writer Martin Samuel, our columnist Micah Richards and Richards’ Sky Sports colleague Jamie Carragher led the calls for United to turn to serial winner Conte to save their season and eventually get them challenging for trophies again. 

Solskjaer would stumble on for another month thanks in large part to a 3-0 win at Tottenham a week after the Liverpool mauling, a result which had a knock-on effect that means that Conte will be in the Spurs dugout and not United’s when the two teams meet at Old Trafford in Premier League on Saturday night.

While United dithered, Spurs acted swiftly, sacking Nuno Espirito Santo after just a few months in charge and appointing Conte just three days after the United defeat on November 2.

Antonio Conte celebrates a goal as Tottenham thrash Everton 5-0 on Monday night

Eighteen days later, United were embarrassingly beaten 4-1 at relegation-battling Watford and Solskjaer’s time was up as he was sacked the following day. After United appointed a caretaker, Michael Carrick, and then an interim manager, Ralf Rangnick, the question was asked again: why didn’t they snap up Conte weeks earlier?

Carragher wrote in his Telegraph column at the time: ‘Spurs were smart in moving slightly earlier for the outstanding Antonio Conte. We will never know if Conte could have been tempted to United instead, had they shown any interest.

‘Some say Conte was not the right fit for United. Speak to those at the highest level of football and there is general bewilderment at that.

‘What exactly do United want? Are they so naive as to believe there is another Sir Alex Ferguson out there, who will run the club in his image for the next 25 years? Wake up! The football world has changed. Those managers do not exist anymore.’

Jamie Carragher felt that Manchester United should have appointed Conte in October

When Carragher says ‘some say Conte was not the right fit for United’, he is clearly pointing his words towards long-time Sky colleague and sparring partner Gary Neville, who insisted that the Italian was not the right fit for United.

Neville reiterated that viewpoint when challenged by Richards after United 4-1 derby mauling at Man City on Sunday.  

‘They should have gone for Conte,’ Richards said in a heated debate. ‘Conte was available before he went to Spurs and he was the best available manager at the time.

‘Just because he doesn’t fit the “Man United way”, he didn’t get in? The “Man United way” doesn’t exist anymore; they don’t win any trophies.

‘Conte is a winner. He has come from Inter Milan. Do United not want winners now? He wins. He wins!’

Micah Richards (second right) and Gary Neville (far left) had a heated row about Conte

Neville fired back: ‘United didn’t want Conte. Conte is not a manager for Manchester United, he comes in for one or two years and leaves.

‘United have been there with Jose Mourinho. They want to appoint [Mauricio] Pochettino or [Erik] Ten Hag on a long-term project but needed someone to get them until the end of the season.’

Ralf Rangnick has struggled to impose a new style on Manchester United

So, several months after Conte and Rangnick took charge of Spurs and United, who has been proved right? 

There is little to split between the two records in the Premier League. Conte has taken Spurs from eighth to seventh, picking up 30 points from 16 matches in charge, while Rangnick has taken United from seventh to fifth, with 26 points from 14 games.

In a brilliant start, Conte didn’t lose in the Premier League until his 10th match in charge, but since then Spurs have lost four in seven, prompting the emotional Italian to offer to quit after a loss at Burnley last month. That defeat came just three days after the highlight of his reign so far, a 3-2 win at champions Manchester City, and rather summed up the up and down nature of Conte’s Spurs so far.

Rangnick’s United, in contrast, have been consistently average. He has not got United performing any better than Solskjaer did, but results have improved. The hallmark of his interim stewardship though has been too many draws – five in the league – in games which United were expected to win.

Where Conte and Tottenham are ahead of Rangnick and United, however, is in the development of a long-term project. Spurs are settled into his trademark 3-4-2-1 formation, which delivered him the title with Chelsea in 2017, while new signings Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur are starting to bed in nicely. Spurs look just a couple of quality defensive signings away from being able to challenge for the title again.

United, in contrast, have been stuck on pause since Solskjaer left. The players are the same, mostly, and the football looks the same, mostly. Rangnick has tried to implement a high-pressing game to pave the way for a new manager in the mould of Jurgen Klopp or Thomas Tuchel, but most of the playing squad have not responded well to it. Whoever replaces Rangnick in the summer, it will be back to square one again, with an overhaul of the playing squad desperately needed.

Tottenham need to qualify for the Champions League to keep Harry Kane (right) happy

Spurs sit just two points behind United in the table with two games in hand and the symbolism of usurping them on Saturday at their own stadium would not be lost on Conte. He would surely have taken the United job if offered it in October, and United fans would surely have taken his counter-attacking style over a half-baked pressing philosophy if it brought with it results. 

The challenge for Conte now is to bring consistency to Tottenham, starting on Saturday. Given their games in hand, a draw would not be a bad result, but a loss would be a huge blow to their top four hopes with Arsenal in ominous form.

If Spurs do not make the Champions League next season, Conte can expect Harry Kane to come knocking on his door and ask for a summer transfer, and suddenly the progress he has made since November will all start to ebb away.

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