Manchester United bidder Jim Ratcliffe targeting ex-Chelsea boss Graham Potter

Manchester United bidder Jim Ratcliffe is reportedly eyeing a move for former Chelsea manager Graham Potter to take over at French side OGC Nice, the club the English billionaire currently owns.

The Ineos Group billionaire is currently leading the chase to acquire the Red Devils after submitting his final bid for the club at the end of April.

Nice parted ways with manager Lucien Favre in January and handed the reigns over to reserve coach Didier Digard on an interim basis before being appointed permanently.

However, the Ligue 1 outfit have struggled of late and are out of the European places in eighth and were knocked out of the Europa League last month with Ratcliffe understood to be targeting a new permanent manager to take over ahead of next season.

According to Nice-Matin, Ratcliffe's fellow countryman Potter has been shortlisted for the role having been sacked by Chelsea last month.

The 47-year-old joined from Brighton in October but failed to make the desired impact with the Blues struggling to score goals on a consistent basis and subsequently look set for a bottom half finish.

However, the job the Englishman did in Sussex must be noted with the Seagulls securing their first-ever top half finish in the Premier League last season whilst managing to consolidate themselves as an established top-flight club since Potter's appointment in 2019.

The 47-year-old also had a successful spell in Sweden with Ostersunds and managed to keep Swansea City's heads above water despite very little backing.

Graham Potter applauds fans

In the current climate of top-flight football in France, securing a league title ahead of Paris Saint-Germain is some feat. It's also something Nice haven't done since 1959 with the target likely to be guiding the French side into the Champions League.

This season has shown that success in Ligue 1 is possible for smaller outfits with Lens a perfect example. Having been promoted from the French second tier as recently as 2020 but currently sit second in the table and have secured European football for next term.