Manchester United fans have voiced their anger not only at the owners. Other members of the hierarchy, such as football director Jason Wilcox, have also been in the spotlight.

Jason Wilcox is frequently zoomed in on by TV cameras at Manchester United matches. They tend to capture his facial expression when the team is losing or when fans sing about their disapproval of his presence at the club.

The same applies to the Glazers and Jim Ratcliffe. Those chants are loud and clear at every match, urging the owners to sell up and to stick their new stadium where the sun doesn’t shine.

For the first time in United’s history, the club have sacked two permanent managers in one calendar year following Michael Carrick’s dismissal on Thursday. That led to Mauricio Pochettino’s appointment on Friday.

Man Utd should reconsider Paul Mitchell instead of Jason Wilcox

From speaking to other United fans, there’s a view that Wilcox should be held responsible for the three managerial sackings he has been involved in since arriving at the club in 2024. He initially joined as technical director after 15 months in a similar role at Man City, where most of his work stemmed from academy development.

Wilcox became director of football in December 2024 following Dan Ashworth’s exit. Since then, things have gone backwards for United both on and off the pitch. The former Leeds and Blackburn Rovers player has come under sustained attack from supporters, which I don’t think will stop anytime soon.

While The Telegraph reported that Wilcox and Omar Berrada (chief executive) are expected to keep their jobs despite the sacking of a third manager on their watch, the club should really be trying to ensure the new head coach is a success. One place to start would be to rekindle talks with sporting director Paul Mitchell, who already has a good working relationship with Pochettino.

The link stems from Pochettino’s first managerial spell in English football, at Southampton. Mitchell was part of the recruitment team that brought the Argentine to St. Mary’s, where he led the Saints to an eighth-place finish in his only season before moving to Tottenham.

Mitchell followed Pochettino to Tottenham, where they continued their close working relationship. They worked together to bring a range of players to the club, including Son Heung-min, who eventually became one of the best players in the Premier League.

As well as leading Tottenham to the 2019 Champions League final, Pochettino never finished outside the Premier League’s top four between 2015 and 2019. That is why I find any suggestion that he failed at Tottenham laughable. Let’s not pretend Spurs are renowned for winning trophies, but his time there is proof that Pochettino raised expectations.

United would be naive not to consider Mitchell as an upgrade on Wilcox. There have been talks in the past that never materialised, and he hasn’t held a position at a club since leaving Newcastle in 2025. It also bodes well that he has already proven to be a successful partner for Pochettino, whereas Wilcox hasn’t been successful with anyone as a sporting director, like a fish out of water.