Brendan Rodgers was hotly tipped as a Manchester United managerial candidate when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was sacked.
There were even reports that he was house hunting ahead of his appointment before United decided to hire an interim boss in the shape of Ralf Rangnick.
At the time, he distanced himself from the job, but his comments were similar to ones he made while he was manager of Celtic, shortly before joining Leicester.
We even wrote at the time about the reasons it could have been worth United going all-in to get him, but it is fair to say that the landscape has changed since then.
Leicester’s 2-1 defeat at Wolves on Sunday means they are on a five-game winless run in the Premier League and ESPN report that slump in form has effectively ruled Rodgers out of the United job long-term.
The process of looking for a permanent manager is set to really get underway in earnest and Rodgers no longer looks like a serious contender.
United’s decision to go for an interim before taking their time to name the long-term boss seems to have really counted against Rodgers.
Even at the time of Solskjaer’s sacking, Leicester weren’t having the best season, which created lingering question marks over whether United should have taken the plunge and gone for him.
Now, the situation has worsened and Rodgers is now seemingly out of the race. That may please some supporters given he is a former Liverpool manager.
That said, it does perhaps show up shortcomings in the managerial appointment process even at this early stage that someone who was reportedly seriously considered months ago is now completely out of the race.
If United were to appoint the new man from inside the Premier League, Rodgers was the most likely candidate, so it appears they will be looking at managers from abroad now.
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