Of all the names that tend to come up whenever the Manchester United manager's position comes up, Ralph Hasenhuttl is rarely mentioned.
But Paul Scholes and Glenn Hoddle believe the Southampton manager could be a perfect choice to take over at Old Trafford next season and work under old his old mentor Ralf Rangnick again.
Hasenhuttl worked for two years as coach of RB Leipzig while Rangnick was sporting director of the club, overseeing their best ever finish in the Bundesliga as they came second in the 2016/17 season.
Leipzig couldn't keep up the momentum the following campaign and after finishing sixth in the league and missing out on Champions League qualification, Hasenhuttl left.
He then took over as Southampton boss in December 2018.
The Austrian may have presided over some humiliating defeats such as 9-0 hammerings to Leicester City in 2019 and United last season, but he has instilled a real identity into his Southampton side, who visited Old Trafford on Saturday on the back of a hugely impressive 3-2 win at Tottenham.
And Hoddle believes Hasenhuttl could be the ideal man to step into the United dugout next season when Rangnick ends his spell as interim coach and takes an upstairs role at the club.
Speaking ahead of the game on BT Sport, Hoddle, Scholes and presenter Jake Humphrey discussed the possibility of the pair working together at United after watching a video of their time together in Leipzig.
"When we were watching the clip I said to Paul would that not be a good fit?" Hoddle said.
"If they’ve worked so close together, if Rangnick is going to be a sporting director eventually, that works. Southampton would want to keep him, of course they would as he’s doing an excellent job there. But if he wanted it, that would make sense."
Scholes admitted he had never considered Hasenhuttl as a future United boss but quickly warmed to the idea.
"It's not something that’s really crossed my mind, but watching that interview, there’s a closeness between them. He was the right choice at the right time at Leipzig, did brilliantly and I've always liked him.
"I’ve always thought the football he’s played at Southampton, it’s not the best squad, has worked and his teams have been good to watch he comes across really well.
"This [going to United] would be a different kind of pressure, people around this club and fans especially are thinking more about Mauricio Pochettino or Antonio Conte, people who have been at the big clubs. But the more I think about it, I don't think it’d be a bad thing, the way he goes about his business looks good."
‘The pure simplicity of the way Slot has managed the squad is probably the biggest thing I could say about him. It’s not broken, so let’s get on with it’: Liverpool legend full of admiration for Jurgen Klopp's successor at Anfield
‘I trained at Spurs and thought they’d give me a chance. But I received a letter thanking me but saying they didn’t think I was good enough – I was gutted’: How Tottenham missed out on signing Wales legend John Toshack
