MAN UTD: TEN HAG ‘A DEAD MAN WALKING’ WITH RED DEVILS BOSS GIVEN SACK TIMELINE
Man Utd boss Erik ten Hag will reportedly be ‘a dead man walking’ if results do not improve, with Sir Jim Ratcliffe giving him until Christmas to turn things around.
Ten Hag was expected to be sacked at the end of last season but saved his job by winning the FA Cup final against Manchester City.
That was obviously huge in keeping the Dutchman at Man Utd but new co-owner Ratcliffe did speak to other managers in June and was keen on bringing in Thomas Tuchel or Gareth Southgate.
None of his reported targets were willing to take the job in the summer and the British billionaire ended up offering Ten Hag a new contract to end the uncertainty.
Ten Hag has managed to bring all of that uncertainty back following an unconvincing start to the season.
The Red Devils underwhelmed at home to Fulham on matchday one but got the win, before losing away to Brighton and 3-0 at home to Liverpool, leaving them with three points from their opening three Premier League fixtures.
The inquest is already well underway, with several reports saying Ten Hag – who is joint-favourite in the Premier League sack race – is not expected to last the full season in charge.
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Erik ten Hag: ‘A dead man walking’ at Man Utd
The latest report comes from Football Insider, where it is claimed that the former Ajax boss will be viewed as ‘a dead man walking’ if results and performances do not improve.
It is believed that Ten Hag is going to get until ‘at least Christmas’ to prove his worth to the Man Utd hierarchy, who ‘aren’t looking to make any kneejerk reactions to the club’s poor start to the season’.
Ten Hag is ‘safe for now’, though it is admitted that he kept his job ‘out of luck more than anything’ after club chiefs looked at replacements at the end of 2023/24.
Understandably, Ratcliffe and co. ‘want to see an improvement in performances and results’. If they do not, the Red Devils manager ‘is going to be in trouble’.
The report adds: ‘Ten Hag’s bosses will not keep accepting poor results, and if there is a lack of progress then they will not hesitate to search for a new manager.’
The Dutch manager has faced plenty of criticism already this season and has been quick to use the argument that he has won a trophy in both of his seasons in England, making Man Utd the second-most successful club in the country since his arrival.
Before the 3-0 defeat against Liverpool at Old Trafford, Man Utd CEO Omar Berrada and sporting director Dan Ashworth backed Ten Hag, releasing a statement after the match.
“Do we still believe in Erik? Absolutely,” Berrada said. “We think Erik is the right coach for us and we’re fully backing him.”
Ashworth said: “I’ve really enjoyed working with Erik for the last eight weeks.
“I see my job is to support him in every way I possibly can and whether that’s operationally, whether that’s with recruitment, whether that’s with medical, whether that’s with psychology, whether that’s training ground flow, it’s just to take as much of that off him to allow him to fully focus on the training pitch and the match tactical plan to deliver success for Manchester United.”
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2024-09-07T08:39:48Z dg43tfdfdgfd