Erik ten Hag is fighting to save his job as Manchester United coach. Ten Hag, 54, has not received the unequivocal support of the club’s new football leadership regime, led by new minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, and the team is a stranger to securing it. Champions League Qualification – They are eight points adrift of fourth place with 12 games left to play in the Premier League.
With United already eliminated from the Champions League this season – Ten Hag’s side finished last in their group – and were eliminated from the Carabao Cup in the fourth round, FA cup It is the club’s only path to silverware, with a fifth-round clash on Wednesday at Nottingham Forest (Live on ESPN+) Now a huge game for Manchester United.
Ten Hag, who was appointed from Ajax in June 2022, won the Carabao Cup and led United to third place in the Premier League in his first season, but his second season saw the team slide from one disappointment to another.
What does the future hold for the Dutch coach? With his new bosses already making moves off the pitch by appointing a new CEO, Omar Berrada from Manchester City, and appointing Newcastle’s Dan Ashworth as director of football, the manager’s position is uncertain due to the lack of overall commitment to Ten Hag.
There are good reasons for him to stay. There are similarly good people to replace them. But what will United do?
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Why should Ten Hag leave?
Every football manager is ultimately judged on results. This is why Ten Hag’s future at Old Trafford is uncertain.
United’s performance was very poor this season, especially in the Champions League, where they won just one match and finished bottom of a weak group that included Galatasaray and FC Copenhagen. Ten Hag’s side conceded 15 goals in six matches – only Belgian side Royal Antwerp (17 goals) had a worse defensive record in the competition.
In the Premier League, Ten Hag’s side have lost more games at this stage of the season (10) than David Moyes’ side did in the 2013-14 season (8), and Moyes was sacked less than 12 months into a six-year contract shortly before the start of the season. season. The end of that campaign.
It has been one step forward and one step back for United this season. Despite the club boasting the most expensive squad ever assembled last year, according to UEFA, their goal difference this season after 26 matches stands at zero – they have scored 36 goals and conceded the same amount. To put these numbers into context, leaders Liverpool have a goal difference of plus 38, having scored 63 goals and conceded 25 goals; Arsenal have the best goal difference at the moment (plus-39) having scored 62 and conceded 23.
United’s performance on the pitch is down to Ten Hag. He chooses the players and decides the tactics, and both have failed him. Many players have failed to live up to their reputations, and no one has fallen further than the England striker Marcus Rashford. But Ten Hag’s gameplan was repeatedly exposed by opposing managers, whose teams took advantage of the chaotic nature of United’s defense as a team.
United’s forwards do not press as aggressively or strategically as other teams, their midfielders lack defensive discipline and are often kept out of position while opponents attack on the counter-attack, and Ten Hag’s defenders, especially their full-backs, rarely perform like a cohesive team. lonliness.
While Ten Hag’s tactical qualities have come under the microscope, his judgment in the transfer market represents another major flaw. Ten Hag United pushed to sign a winger Anthony From Ajax after arriving from the same Dutch club in 2022. United’s recruitment team had reservations about the Brazil international’s ability to succeed and also the £85m fee Ajax was demanding, but Ten Hag won the argument as the club were determined to back him. Their new manager is in his first summer.
Anthony has been a costly flop, scoring just one goal and one assist in all competitions this season. A goal keeper Andre Onanawho played under Ten Hag at Ajax and signed for £47.5m from Inter Milan over the summer, is another player who has struggled to perform to expectations.
Ultimately, a coach who records poor results, makes bad signings and fails to make his team competitive is only headed in one direction: through the exit door.
2:22
Nicol: Fulham beat Manchester United at Old Trafford
Steve Nicol’s reaction after Fulham beat Manchester United 2-1 in the English Premier League.
Why should Ten Hag stay?
Since Ten Hag stepped onto Old Trafford in the summer of 2022, he has had to deal with a myriad of issues off the pitch. None was greater than the destabilizing influence of the club’s majority owners, the Glazer family, who spent more than a year conducting a “strategic review” that ended with Ratcliffe buying a minority stake and taking charge of football operations.
The Glazers, deeply unpopular owners since their takeover of United in 2005, have been a buffer for fan unrest, so Ten Hag has had to build his team against a backdrop of constant protests and disharmony.
Ten Hag agreed to exit Cristiano Ronaldo To Saudi Arabia’s Al-Nassr in November 2022 after the striker repeatedly challenged his authority, during his exile Jadon Sancho from the first team before being sent back on loan to Borussia Dortmund after the winger refused to apologize for his public display of dissent on social media earlier this season. Meanwhile, Rashford’s behavior off the pitch, having twice angered Ten Hag with his sociability this season, has done little to make the manager’s job easier.
Injuries were another big problem for Ten Hag. Lisandro Martinez, Mason Mount, Casemiro, Luke Shaw, Anthony Martial And Terrell Melcia They have all missed significant periods due to injury this season, and most are still sidelined. Front center Rasmus Hoglund Arrived from Atalanta for £64m in the summer due to a back injury that delayed his debut by more than a month, and the Denmark international is now struggling with the injury again and faces a few weeks out with a muscle injury after finally regaining his goalscoring form.
Ten Hag supporters may also argue that United failed to deliver the players the club wanted to sign. Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong Ten Hag considered him crucial to their plans, but United were unable to persuade the Netherlands international to leave for Old Trafford despite agreeing a £58m move with Barcelona.
United also failed to challenge Bayern Munich for the £88m England striker Harry Kane Last summer due to concerns about Tottenham’s desire to deal with another English club. Senior United figures told ESPN that Ten Hag favored a move for youngster Hoglund due to the belief that he would be better suited to their desire to have a striker who would press opponents high up the pitch, but other sources said he was the better option. The club’s finances dictated Højlund’s pursuit of Kane.
A key element in Ten Hag’s appointment as manager was his track record of putting faith in young players – a quality that matches United’s long-standing tradition of championing young talent.
Ten Hag has delivered this area with both wings Alejandro Garnacho (19) Midfielder Kobe Maino (18) They have emerged as first-team players this season after being given opportunities by the manager. Hoglund, 21, is another young star who has begun to shine under Ten Hag as he has scored 13 goals in his 30 appearances in all competitions so far this season.
So, while results on the pitch do little to help Ten Hag make a convincing case for retaining his job, it is clear that he has operated in a very difficult environment due to factors off the pitch. With Ratcliffe now bringing clarity and a keen focus on football, Ten Hag may now be able to spend more time doing what he was set out to do: building a team capable of making United serious contenders again. Why move him this summer when he didn’t have the chance to prove himself?
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Does Sir Jim Ratcliffe have a plan for Old Trafford?
Gabe Marcotti and Julian Lorenz try to decipher what Sir Jim Ratcliffe will do at Manchester United’s Old Trafford.
Judgment
If Ten Hag fails to secure Champions League qualification for United this season, it is difficult to imagine a scenario in which he remains as manager. But the financial hit of missing out on the game’s premier club competition will make it more difficult for United to sack Ten Hag and replace him with a high-profile successor.
A source told ESPN that firing Ten Hag and his staff would cost around £14m with 12 months left on their contracts at Old Trafford.
If it costs £10-15m to appoint a new manager, it would leave a huge hole in the club’s budget at a time when United are struggling to comply with Financial Fair Play regulations due to a combination of overspending and low returns. From the transfers issued and the decrease in prize money in recent seasons.
Ratcliffe and his new football system have made it clear they want to reduce the financial waste that has hampered United in recent years. They want to be smarter in the transfer market and make sure the days of spending high on unsuitable players are over. But if the first decision they make is focused on spending between £25m and £30m to change the manager, that would hold the club back and make it difficult to move the team forward.
However, it is unlikely that Tin Hag will survive simply because the costs of removing it seem unpalatable. Successful, high-profile managers such as Thomas Tuchel and Jose Mourinho will be on the market this summer, while the likes of Brighton’s Robert De Zerbe, Sporting’s Ruben Amorim and Porto’s Sergio Conceicao are emerging as contenders for bigger jobs in the coming months.
With Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Liverpool already looking for new coaches at the end of the season – and a change possible at Chelsea, Newcastle and Paris Saint-Germain – the managerial department may be more interesting than the transfer window.
This summer offers United the opportunity to make a major change at a time when many of their rivals are also looking to hit the reset button. History shows that new regimes/new owners generally appoint their own manager within 12 months of taking over, so Ten Hag has to do everything he can to save his job. His results, recruitment and tactics all count against him, so even if he manages to sneak United into the Champions League, he hasn’t done enough to earn another year as manager.
