Former Prem boss explains why he would do ‘a terrible job at Manchester United’

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Manchester United have a new CEO in Omar Berrada but a top role at the Premier League giants is not for everyone with ex-Southampton chief Martin Semmens admitting he would be a ‘terrible’ fit at Old Trafford.

While Omar Berrada arrives boasting a supreme track record when it comes to keeping a European giant at the top of the tree – a key cog in periods of huge success at Barcelona and Manchester City – Martin Semmens, by his own admission, is more comfortable a few branches further down.

Semmens spent six years at Southampton between 2017 and 2023, appointed as the club’s Chief Executive Officer halfway through his spell at St Mary’s.

But, while not ruling out a return to football at some point in the future, Semmens clearly believes that a ferociously high-pressure, high-profile role like the one Berrada has just taken on is not right for a man who prefers to do his work on a smaller budget at an ambitious, up-and-coming institution rather than an established sporting and commercial powerhouse.

Omar Berrada is Manchester United’s new CEO

“I think the difficult bit in football is having this plan. Having the right people at the right time,” Semmens tells talkSPORT (23 January, 12pm).

“I’ve always said that I thought I could do a pretty good job in a smaller club. (One) that was building and growing. I’d do a terrible job at Man United, in my opinion. I just wouldn’t deal with the corporate structure of it.”

Such concerns are unlikely to be held by Berrada. A man who clearly has the confidence and the drive to step out of his comfort zone and take on the sort of challenge that would have many running for the hills.

After Jean-Claude Blanc – a huge part of Juventus’ modern success and PSG’s emergence as a footballing giant – Berrada is the second potentially transformative hire of the INEOS era at Old Trafford.

‘Wow’

“I spoke to some guys who are at City,” Rio Ferdinand, a six-time Premier League champion with the Red Devils, tells Vibe with Five. “They can’t believe we’ve got him. They think ‘wow’.

“He’s done so much in the game, at different levels. And he’s been successful. And it’s a really good, sharp signing for us.

“I think this could potentially be one of our best January signings, from the current climate especially.”