Erik Ten Hag sacked as United’s coach.

Manchester United have sacked Erik ten Hag following Sunday’s 2-1 defeat at West Ham, marking one of the club’s worst starts to a Premier League season. 

United have managed only one victory in their last five league matches and currently sit in 14th place, just seven points above the relegation zone, with only eight goals scored in nine league games. 

The club’s management felt there were no excuses for the recent performances and decided to part ways with Ten Hag, informing him of their decision on Monday morning.

Ruud van Nistelrooy, a former Manchester United striker who joined the club’s coaching staff this summer, will temporarily take charge of the first team. 

United’s next match is scheduled for Wednesday at home against Leicester in the Carabao Cup.

It was believed that Ten Hag needed to secure at least one victory in the previous week’s fixtures against Fenerbahce in the Europa League and West Ham. 

United managed a 1-1 draw against José Mourinho’s side in Turkey, and the subsequent loss on Sunday sealed Ten Hag’s fate. 

The club had initially wanted to give him time to stabilise the team during this period of change, hoping he would collaborate with new sporting director Dan Ashworth and technical director Jason Wilcox to help turn the club around after finishing eighth last season. However, there has been no noticeable improvement.

This decision is the most significant made by Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his associates since his company, Ineos, acquired a minority stake in the club.

United’s low finish of eighth in the Premier League last season was their worst since 1990. They began this campaign with just four wins in 13 matches across all competitions.

At the start of September, United’s chief executive, Omar Berrada, and Ashworth publicly expressed their support for Ten Hag. 

“Do we still believe in Erik?” Berrada asked. “Absolutely. We think Erik is the right coach for us, and we’re fully backing him.”

Ten Hag faced intense pressure at the end of last season but managed to secure victory against Manchester City in the FA Cup final, which helped him retain his position after United had discussions with several potential candidates.

Among those considered were Thomas Tuchel, who later ruled himself out of the job and accepted the England national team role, along with Brentford’s Thomas Frank and former England manager Gareth Southgate.

Ten Hag left Ajax to succeed interim manager Ralf Rangnick at United for the 2022-23 season. 

He was given a contract through June 2025, with an option for an additional year, which was taken up this summer in a momentary show of support from Ratcliffe.

In his first campaign, Ten Hag guided United to a third-place finish, 14 points off the top, and secured the Carabao Cup by beating Newcastle in the final.

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