Could a quirk of fate be about to save Manchester United?

With an almost paranormal sense of timing, this week’s fixture list took an eligible, 49-year-old Argentine to Old Trafford’s doorstep.

Mauricio Pochettino came to town in the guise of manager of Paris Saint-Germain who went down to Manchester City in the Champions League.

But in the minds of many, he could and should be the next permanent boss of United.

Even if his team did not enhance his chances on the night, it was a heaven-sent chance for managerless United to begin a new era.

Forget the straight bat at his press conferences, he’s clearly interested in the job. And United should have made him an offer he couldn’t refuse.

To come now. To end the agony. To clear up the dog’s breakfast of indecision that has plagued this season and much of the past three.

To put three billion people out of their misery.

For a while now, Poch has seemed to be The Man.

Singled out by Fergie but let slip by Ed Woodward when he was still hoping Ole Gunnar Solskjaer would justify his three-year contract, the former Spurs boss was allowed to spend almost a year out of work.

He has never won anything but ticks most of the other boxes.

Plays attacking football. Gives youth a chance. Is an excellent man manager. Turned Tottenham into Champions League finalists. Knows the Premier League.

He also happens to be an Anglophile and holds no grudge towards England despite Michael Owen diving for a penalty against him at the 2002 World Cup.

His family is still in London and he has no need to go back to the Paris hotel room in which he has been holed up for the last few months.

Despite the respite the win over Villareal has brought, United are still being strangled by indecision.

By now, you’d think that they would have had enough of caretakers.

Yet as they ended Solskjaer’s reign three years too late, they announced that not one but two temps will guide them through the rest of the season.

But they’re not sure how long the first one will last or who the second one will be.

By next summer they hope that one of their “permanent” targets will be available and willing to sup from the poisoned chalice. And Poch is high on that list.

You have to wonder if the Old Trafford indecision-makers are writing the definitive guide on How Not to Run a Football Club.

Relief at securing a place at the business end of this season’s Champions League isn’t likely to last long.

Not the way Chelsea smashed four past Juventus who are harder nuts to crack than the rabble in front of David de Gea.

Another hammering at Stamford Bridge on top of those against Liverpool, Manchester City and Watford, could make United strong contenders for the Europa Conference next season.

That may deter a few would-be candidates, but perhaps not Poch.

And now, like buying shares, he may feel it’s better to go into a bear market.

Just how has the world’s richest club – on some balance sheets anyway – come to this?

It’s the lowest ebb since relegation in 1973.

The way the Solskjaer era has been handled has been utterly shambolic. In fact, the post-Ferguson era has been mis-handled from the get-go.

It began when they allowed Fergie to leave at the same time as CEO David Gill. A multi-billion-pound conglomerate allowing its two main men to leave at the same time!

And after two decades of success in tandem!

As for their replacements, David Moyes was out of his depth and Woodward is not a football man.

If the first was a surprise, the second you couldn’t make up.

And they’ve been struggling ever since.

Big names on and off the field have come through the revolving doors, but few have worked out.

As Gary Neville noted this week, “on the business side the club may have been run OK, but the football side leaves a lot to be desired.”

He was being kind to his beloved club.

The current squad is the second most expensive ever assembled in the history of football – behind only PSG’s current glitterati.

Michael Carrick made many a United heart sink by saying his ideas were very much like his predecessor’s. The new boss sounding just like the old boss.

But he got a win and is only in charge for two games unless he pulls off an unlikely success at Chelsea perhaps. And then comes A.N. Other.

What happens if they keep losing?

Not in his worst nightmares could Fergie have imagined how things have gone since he quit.

It’s all been ad hoc: no grand design, just buy luxury items and hope they click. Epitomised by Ronaldo which was like buying a Ferrari when the roof needs fixing.

It’s midfield in United’s case.

Only a handful of managers come close to fitting the bill and Pochettino is the best of them. He should be snapped up now and PSG compensated.

Even United can’t afford to write off an entire season.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of FMT.