Man Utd hold seven-hour Ten Hag crisis meeting as Ratcliffe left with £50m issue (original) (raw)
Erik ten Hag's future was top of the agenda when Manchester United's executives met in London for scheduled talks, after the Premier League team's woeful start to the season
Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Sir Dave Brailsford following a board meeting at INEOS headquarters in London
Manchester United chiefs held a seven-hour crisis meeting on Tuesday – with Erik ten Hag still unsure if he will remain in charge.
Ten Hag's future was top of the agenda when United's executives met in London for scheduled talks, after the team's woeful start to the season. United are down in 14th place in the Premier League, with just two wins from seven games and a goal difference of minus three, putting Ten Hag's job on the line.
Co-owners Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Joel Glazer met with CEO Omar Berrada, sporting director Dan Ashworth, technical director Jason Wilcox and director Sir Dave Brailsford to decide Ten Hag's fate.
The meeting, at United's plush London offices in Mayfair, began at 10am and finished just before 5pm, with Ratcliffe and Brailsford leaving through a rear entrance to avoid the waiting media.
United's miserable return of eight points at this stage of the season is their worst start for more than half a century, with pressure building on the club's hierarchy to change manager in a bid to turn the team's fortunes around.
Ten Hag jetted off on holiday for the international break, insisting he is aligned with his United bosses and has their full support, although that perceived faith in him has been put to the test in recent weeks.
United missed out on the Champions League last season and have not failed to qualify for the tournament in successive years in the Premier League era.
Failure to make Europe's elite club competition would cost United around £50million, which is why the hierarchy may decide to pull the plug on Ten Hag if they feel a top-four finish is beyond him.
Manchester United chiefs held a seven-hour crisis meeting on Tuesday (
Image:
PA)
Among those in the frame to succeed Ten Hag, should he be sacked, are former England boss Gareth Southgate, Inter Milan head coach Simone Inzaghi and ex-Chelsea and Bayern Munich boss Thomas Tuchel.
If the United hierarchy do decide to offload Ten Hag, the club's former striker Ruud van Nistelrooy, currently part of the first-team coaching staff, would be ready to take charge on an interim basis. Ten Hag's side have only managed five league goals in total this season - only Southampton have scored fewer in the top-flight.
United have also made a flat start to their Europa League campaign, drawing against FC Twente and Porto, to leave them 21st in the table – with only the top 24 qualifying for the knockout stage.
Erik ten Hag is under huge pressure as United's manager (
Image:
Getty Images)
Former United striker Andy Cole defended Ten Hag – who won the League Cup in his first season and the FA Cup last season – and said: “For an individual to win two cup competitions in their first two seasons, that’s not lucky. You can’t be lucky two seasons on the bounce.
“The club will do whatever they decide to do, but if you look at the bigger picture, you can’t just blame the manager. The manager picks the players, but the players are the ones that have to go out there and win football matches.”
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