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What Man Utd could expect from Niko Kovac as head coach
Tom Weber
- Updated: 21 Jan 2026 17:19 GMT
- 5 min read
Analysis
Borussia Dortmund boss Niko Kovac has emerged as one of the candidates for the Manchester United job.
Michael Carrick is currently in interim charge of the Red Devils following the sacking of Ruben Amorim, but as things stand, Man Utd are poised to make an external, full-time hire in the summer.
This plan could yet change if Carrick manages to build on the brilliant 2-0 demolition of Man City at the weekend, but for now, the clear expectation is that he is only a short-term fix.
Naturally, scores of managers have been linked with the Man Utd job in recent weeks. Oliver Glasner was an early favourite, but he may have talked himself out of contention with his recent outbursts. Thomas Tuchel and Roberto de Zerbi are known to be admired by INEOS.
Borussia Dortmund boss Niko Kovac is the latest tactician to be associated with the Old Trafford outfit, with Sky Germany reporting that he is on INEOS' shortlist, having previously also been linked with Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham.
Kovac is a strong character - too strong for INEOS?
Reporter Patrick Berger makes a salient point when he says that Kovac has a better reputation in England than in Germany. The former Croatia international is viewed quite negatively in the country of his birth.
Within Bundesliga circles, Kovac is regarded as a hardman, a disciplinarian who plays dull football. Although the 54-year-old has admitted that he would ideally like his team to play exciting stuff, he knows that it is a results business and therefore values defensive solidity and hard work above all else.
Prior to taking the Dortmund job, Kovac also had a reputation for being needlessly confrontational with his players. Max Kruse, himself an eccentric personality whose words need to be taken with a pinch of salt, claimed that Kovic is "an absolute catastrophe in terms of character."
Kruse accused Kovac of pushing him out of Wolfsburg and pointed to previous instances of the coach ostracising established players. He claimed that Kovac has a compulsive urge to prove to his players that he is the "top dog," and he attempts to achieve this by picking fights with his biggest stars.
Kovac had spats with Eintracht Frankfurt legend Alex Meier during his time there, he did not get along with Thomas Muller at Bayern Munich and also sidelined Wissam Ben Yedder at Monaco, although given what has happened to the latter since, he may have been right to do so...
At Dortmund, the view of Kovac has shifted slightly. While BVB have mostly played uninspiring football, Kovac has managed to consistently get good results. His side are second in the Bundesliga, with just one loss so far this season.
He has also not pushed any established players out of the club, although there have been public issues with Karim Adeyemi. Those have, however, been primarily due to the player's inability to accept being substituted.
All in all, Kovac has managed to enhance his reputation at Dortmund. He managed to get them into the Champions League last term despite a disastrous start to the season under Nuri Sahin, and he is on course to meet expectations this season.
What makes him attractive to Man Utd is that he is not actively going out and demanding players or more power. He accepts his place in the hierarchy and is focused on working with what he has at his disposal.
However, he is a very strong character, and there will always be the tangible risk of an explosion. Tactically, he would be an underwhelming hire. There is little Man Utd DNA in Kovacball, so Gary Neville would be the first one to complain about how boring games are.
Kovac does not seem to be a great fit for Man Utd, and this is why Dortmund are not worried about the interest in their coach. He is still under contract until 2027, and the Bundesliga giants are calm about the situation.
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