MANCHESTER UNITED should go for "brutal" Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone because they need a "tough manager".
That is according to United legend Gary Neville, who claims Simeone should be a candidate after he led Atletico to a 2-1 aggregate victory that eliminated the Red Devils from the Champions League.
The Manchester giants are looking for a manager to take over after interim boss Ralf Rangnick moves up to a consultancy role in June.
United have been linked with Paris Saint-Germain's Mauricio Pochettino, Ajax's Erik ten Hag and Chelsea's Thomas Tuchel in their search for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's permanent successor.
But Neville believes Simeone should be in the running as he would match up perfectly to the likes of Manchester City's Pep Guardiola and Liverpool's Jurgen Klopp.
However, the footballer-turned-pundit admits Pochettino and Ten Hag would still be "the way forward" because of their progressive philosophy.
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Neville told Sky Sports during a Q&A: "Diego Simeone should be a candidate, but it's never been achievable to get him out of Atletico Madrid.
"He is wedded in there, he is tied. But it would be brilliant to see him in the Premier League, you saw on Tuesday night, I've seen it many times – I got beaten 2-0 in Valencia by his brilliant Atletico Madrid team that [Antoine] Griezmann was in before he went to Barcelona.
"Fantastic coach, brutal in how he approaches the game, I think in every single way. He's tough, and Manchester United need a tough manager.
"Manchester United need a manager who can compete with Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola – they're the best, so they need someone who can stand on that touchline and feel equal to them and I think Simeone could.