Manchester United dismissed Erik ten Hag following a 2-1 loss at West Ham on Sunday, marking one of their poorest beginnings to a Premiership season. Despite having just one win in their last five premier league matches, the club is currently 14th in the standings, seven points clear of the drop zone having only netted eight goals in nine league fixtures. The management decided to terminate ten Hag due to the unsatisfactory results, notifying him on Monday morning.
Ruud van Nistelrooy, an ex-Old Trafford forward who joined the coaching crew during the summer, will temporarily take the helm of the first team. The next fixture for United is against Leicester City at their home ground in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday.
There were speculations that Ten Hag needed to secure at least one victory between last week’s matches with Fenerbahce in the Europa League and West Ham. However, after managing only a 1-1 draw against José Mourinho’s Turkish side, Sunday’s result confirmed his dismissal.
Manchester United dismiss Erik ten Hag and Ruud van Nistelrooy steps in as temporary manager
United were keen on providing ten Hag with a substantial tenure, hoping for stability during a transition phase at the club. They hoped that Ten Hag would collaborate closely with Dan Ashworth, the newly appointed sporting director and technical director Jason Wilcox, to rejuvenate the club following an eighth-place finish last season. However, there has been no evident uptick.
Jim Ratcliffe’s company, Ineos, marked their first major decision since acquiring a minority stake in the club by making the dismissal. United wrapped up last season eighth in the Premier League which was their worst since 1990, and commenced this campaign with a meagre four victories in 13 matches from all tournaments.
At the dawn of September, United’s chief exec, Omar Berrada, and sporting director, Ashworth, had publicly endorsed Ten Hag. Berrada had said, “Absolutely, we believe in Erik. Erik is the correct coach for us and has our total support”. Nevertheless, three days later, the Guardian proclaimed that his “game model” was under examination.
Last season concluded with Ten Hag under immense scrutiny, but he salvaged his position at United following successful talks with various potential replacements, after securing a win against Manchester City in the FA Cup final. Noteworthy candidates included Thomas Tuchel, who dismissed himself from consideration and later accepted the role of England’s national team coach. Other possible successors were Thomas Frank from Brentford and ex-England manager, Gareth Southgate. Ten Hag replaced Ralf Rangnick, the temporarily appointed manager at United, after he left Ajax for the 2022-23 season. The Dutchman was granted a contract until June 2025 with an option to extend for an additional year – an opportunity which was seized this summer as a fleeting gesture of backing from Ratcliffe. United rounded off the season in third place, trailing the leader by 14 points, during Ten Hag’s maiden campaign and also clinched the Carabao Cup, defeating Newcastle in the concluding match. Via Guardian.