Garcia reveals two interviews with Manchester United to succeed Solskjaer in 2021

Rudi Garcia has shed light on negotiations that remained under the radar: the French manager did indeed have two interviews with Manchester United in autumn 2021, when the club was seeking an interim successor to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. He confirms this himself in an interview with The Athletic.

“I had two interviews to work at this fantastic club, one of the best clubs in the world,” Garcia said, noting that he met with Darren Fletcher, then technical director, and John Murtough, then director of football. “I would have liked to work in England. They asked me what I would do once the interim position ended. I told them I would do so well that I would stay at Manchester, but they gave the job to Ralf.”

It was ultimately Austrian Ralf Rangnick who took charge of the Red Devils’ bench for six months, before Erik ten Hag’s appointment. Garcia, meanwhile, went on to other roles, including the Belgium national team, which he led to the quarter-finals of the 2026 World Cup, where Belgium was eliminated by Spain on a goal from Mikel Merino in the 88th minute (2-1) on July 7.

The 62-year-old manager, French champion in 2011 with LOSC, also discusses in this interview the overturned suspension of Folarin Balogun before the Belgian side’s round-of-16 match against the United States — an episode that had stirred behind-the-scenes drama at the tournament.

Garcia, who has managed Roma, Marseille, Lyon and Napoli, makes no secret of his attraction to big clubs with intense fan pressure. “It can be complicated, but it’s also wonderful when you win,” he sums up. Of Spanish origin, he also reveals his ambition to work in Spain one day.