To many football fans, especially those of a Manchester United persuasion, it was a matter of time. The writing had long been on the wall for (Now former) coach Erik ten Hag, and the Dutchman was duly relieved of his duties on Monday lunchtime. For many, it was a logical decision after two seasons of stagnation, culminating in the Red Devils’ worst start in Premier League history this campaign.
Whilst it is true that the court of fans’ opinion, both amongst online and match-going fans, had become resigned to the view that the former Ajax manager was not the right man for the huge job to be done rebuilding a world-famous institution, not everyone was convinced that now was the right moment to pull the trigger. Whisper it quietly, but there might even have been some (This writer included) who weren’t ready to give up on Ten Hag at all. Let’s look at the case for why Manchester United might live to regret letting him go.
Erik ten Hag Sacked: The Case for His Defence
Club statement: Erik ten Hag.#MUFC
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) October 28, 2024
Erik ten Hag Sacked: A First Season That Showed What Could Be
Make no mistake, Manchester United were at a low ebb upon Ten Hag’s arrival in June 2022. After club legend Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s reign was brought to an end in November 2021, Red Bull football architect Ralf Rangnick took interim charge until the end of that season, trying (and failing) to implement a high-octane pressing game that didn’t suit the players at his disposal.
Following Ten Hag’s arrival, the team returned to the transition football that characterised them under Solskjaer to great effect, scoring impressive victories over the likes of Liverpool and Arsenal following a difficult start that included successive losses to Brighton and Brentford. Indeed, the Red Devils’ secured a third-placed finish and even one of two domestic trophies, beating Newcastle United 2-0 in the Carabao Cup final in February and narrowly losing to cross-town rivals Manchester City (2-1) in the FA Cup final at Wembley three months later.
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In addition, the Dutchman became the fastest manager in the club’s history to reach 20 wins (and later, 50 wins) and even navigated off-field situations with aplomb. Casting aside club legend Cristiano Ronaldo and expensive young starlet Jadon Sancho, provoked a mixed reaction from fans on both accounts but earned him respect and authority that had been lacking since the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson in 2013.
An Impossible Second Season But More Silverware
It’s easy to make a case that the extent of United’s injury crisis was underplayed in the 2023/2024 season. As if having the most injuries of any team in the Premier League campaign wasn’t enough, those absences were heavily concentrated in the Red Devils’ backline, with summer arrival Lisandro Martinez missing 210 days of football with 3 separate injuries. In total, 21 different players were injured with a staggering 45 different injuries, a cumulative 1620 days lost to injury between them.
Although a depleted Red Devils squad finished in eighth position, their lowest finish in Premier League history, redemption came in the form of further silverware, an excellent all-round performance seeing Ten Hag’s side get revenge over Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City to secure the FA Cup at Wembley in late May. Considering the vast number of injuries, it was an achievement that deservedly bought the Dutchman time heading into this season.
A Bad Start, but Did This Really Have to Be the End for Ten Hag?
There is no escaping the fact that the start to the current campaign has been a disaster, with the team currently lumbering in 14th position in the Premier League and struggling in European competition. Indeed, the Red Devils have scored the second-lowest number of goals so far, just eight in nine matches. Whilst just three wins in the opening nine games rightly sparks cause for concern, a deeper examination of the situation suggests that Ten Hag might have deserved a while longer to rectify the situation.
Indeed, the defence has been shored up, with summer signings Noussair Mazraoui and Matthijs De Ligt impressing alongside goalkeeper André Onana, who seems to have gained his confidence back after a difficult first season at Old Trafford and has provided crucial interventions to save points for the Red Devils against Aston Villa and in spectacular fashion against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park. As it is, United have conceded just two more goals than league leaders Manchester City and just one more than third-placed Arsenal, widely tipped to push Guardiola’s side all the way again this season.
Despite their travails in front of goal, creating chances hasn’t been the problem. The Red Devils have created more big chances than the league leaders (26), but have missed an incredible 22 of those, most notably Diogo Dalot’s horrendous open goal horror show in what proved to be Ten Hag’s last game on Sunday. Whilst the manager is far from blameless for the difficult start to the season, he cannot convert the chances created himself.
What ultimately may have cost the Dutchman his job is poor recruitment with expensive mistakes like Antony and Casemiro proving costly both in terms of financial outlay and on-field performance.
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In his defence, it is only this summer that United, having overhauled their footballing operations following Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s minority takeover of the club earlier this year, can claim to be actively improving their scouting and talent ID departments, both of which had fallen far behind the sophisticated operations that can be seen at not just the very top Premier League clubs like rivals Manchester City and Liverpool, but also at the likes of Brentford and Brighton, teams without the financial muscle to go toe to toe with the likes of United in the transfer market.
Without the expert backing of experienced football operators like former Manchester City CEO Omar Berrada and ex-Newcastle Sporting Director Dan Ashworth for this first two seasons in charge, Ten Hag was forced to go with what he knew, leading to an influx of players that were either Dutch or that he had coached in his previous role at Ajax.
And so here we are once again, another manager paying the price for what was, until recently, a stagnating football club and its infrastructure being left to decay by the parasitic majority ownership of the Glazer family. The cycle will now start again, with the next manager being left with a squad full of players from the five permanent managers that preceeded him, a mish mash of a squad representing the confusion and stagnation that has reigned over Old Trafford for over a decade.
Once again the manager pays with his job, whilst the players get a fresh start, a squad that has as yet failed to deliver on its considerable potential and failed a manager that has been thrown under the bus, an easy target for the ire of fans and pundits alike. Ten Hag will go on to have a successful career in his management, the sad fact is that he deserved more time to be successful at Manchester United under an ownership that seems determined to prioritise on-field matters rather than commercial deals to maximise profit off it.
Thank you for everything Erik.
