Louis Van Gaal Eyeing A Premier League Return With Southampton
Reuters / Jason Cairnduff
Louis van Gaal is looking for options to restart his career after a sabbatical, and Southampton are among his hot list of prospective clubs in the Premier League.
The ex-United manager would be present at Michael Carrick’s testimonial, which would mark his first return to Old Trafford since he was sacked a year ago.
However, there seems to be a secondary purpose for the Dutchman on his arrival to England and Manchester, as he might make a short trip to Southampton, where talks on his future can be made.
A recent manager for Southampton, Ronald Koeman, was a Dutchman himself, and the club is pleased with Van Gaal’s record at the world stage, having managed multiple clubs across Europe.
According to the Mirror, after an underwhelming season for the Saints under Claude Puel, the head officials at St. Mary are understood to be ready to let him go, and bring the 65-year-old in to lead the charge. While the entire process is understood to be kept at a low key, his year-long sabbatical might be coming to a close.
The former Barcelona boss felt that he was treated harshly when he was sacked by Manchester United despite winning the FA Cup. In his two seasons of the 3-year contract with United, he helped them to 4th and 5th finishes in the league table respectively.
Crystal Palace are also looking at LVG as a replacement, as Sam Allardyce announced his retirement after managing to keep the club safe in the Premier League. The Crystal Palace chairman, Steve Parish, is assessing a list of potential replacements for Big Sam.
With a sudden flush of great managers at the end of this season, the market for potential managers is at an all time high. With Crystal Palace looking at names like Claudio Ranieri, Roberto Mancini, Sam Dyche, and Brendan Rodgers, Louis has stiff competition for the job at the Eagles.
Louis and Southampton, however, would make a much better combination on paper – a manager who likes to push youngsters on the main stage, alongside a club known for producing great players from its academy – almost a match made in heaven!
Written by Srivats Venkateswaran 
Sports writer with a long experience of writing in football.Was football team head at EssentiallySports. Still deeply misses Sir Alex and Berbatov at United. An introvert at heart with a poetic hand. Engineer by choice, writer by passion.