Ten Hag warned Man Utd sack looms with humbling ‘his time is over’ claim

Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has been told that he is already fighting to spare himself from the sack after Sunday’s debacle at home to Liverpool and with an observer from his homeland suggesting “his time has passed” and that Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s judgement to extend his stay was a “big mistake”.

The Dutchman has spent the last 11 months of his reign in the firing line with his second season at the helm not going to plan and with Manchester United having humiliated themselves in the Champions League, finishing bottom, before going to only manage an eighth-placed finish in the Premier League – their lowest ever since the competition began. And with speculation mounting that the axe was about to fall, an unexpected victory in the FA Cup final against Manchester City earned Ten Hag salvation and, ultimately, an unexpected contract extension.

United’s minority shareholder Ratcliffe, though, certainly took his sweet time to deliver his verdict and extend the 54-year-old’s deal by a further 12 months and through until the summer of 2026.

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Ultimately, that cup success  – the second piece of silverware he has delivered at Old Trafford since taking charge, pitching him alongside Jose Mourinho as the club’s most-successful manager since Sir Alex Ferguson retired – ultimately earned him a reprieve.

And while the fanbase were largely behind the decision, together with the fact that Ten Hag was allowed to spend another £200m this summer on five new players, there is already a feeling of deja vu in the way the current season is planning out.

Indeed, a somewhat fortuitous victory over Fulham on the opening weekend was followed up with a late, yet extremely naive, defeat at Brighton on matchday two.

Ten Hag sack: Man Utd boss scolded by Dutch journalist

However, it was Sunday’s crushing home 3-0 defeat to Liverpool that really rubbed salt into the wounds and illustrated that United were falling into the same traps as last season and appeared incapable of matching their opponents in key areas, nor on a tactical level.

The win came courtesy of a Mo Salah masterclass, with the Egyptian scoring one and making two and forcing even Roy Keane into a somewhat awkward confession.

After the game, Ten Hag did his best to explain United’s shortcomings and with the Dutchman coming in for some tough questioning from sections of the gathered media.

Nonetheless, there is a feeling among one observer in his homeland that Ten Hag is already on borrowed time and that it is a question of when, not if, the axe is to fall on the beleaguered former Ajax boss.

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And journalist Valentijn Driessen, writing in his column for De Telegraaf, has boldly claimed that Ten Hag may soon be facing the sack, amid his comments that “his time at United is over”.

“Although despite discussions with other candidates, the club ultimately expressed its confidence in Ten Hag. How long this confidence will last remains to be seen,” Driessen questioned.

“Something like that can happen, but the way in which Liverpool, who were not even playing at their best, played Ten Hag’s team into a pathetic pile, rubbed extra salt in the wound. It could easily have been 7-1 or 8-2. The Brazilian Casemiro was the target, but it is Ten Hag who sets him up and continues to choose him. Although this time he intervened during half-time.

“Ten Hag faces the same ordeal as Casemiro. The English media have sharpened their knives, and this also applies to the army of analysts with many former English stars, and former top United players such as Roy Keane. Ten Hag previously banned journalists who criticised him and his players or stopped speaking to them.”

Suggestion that Ratcliffe realises his mistake

United opted to stand by Ten Hag, offering him that contract extension, despite holding talks with both Thomas Tuchel and Mauricio Pochettino.

Of the pair, their interest in landing Tuchel was the strongest after Ratcliffe held a lengthy meeting with him in Monaco to discuss his vision for taking United forward.

However, it was ultimately decided that the former Bayern, PSG and Chelsea boss would not be able to make a sizeable difference, while the fanbase had a strong sense of wanting to stick with Ten Hag amid a feeling that many of the struggles at the club were not of his making, and that few managers in the game could have fared better than the Dutchman.

Driessen, though, feels Ten Hag does himself no favours with the comments he makes in the media, while he has also questioned the rationale of Ratcliffe for extending his career by a further 12 months.

“Ten Hag gives everyone ammunition to fire,” he said of the under-fire United boss, who nonetheless still boasts a 56.78% win percentage since joining United.

“According to the club management, Ten Hag was the best trainer for United. The new co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has stepped in with big plans, but his judgment regarding Ten Hag is a mistake. His time has passed.”

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