Manchester United players reportedly believe that Sir Jim Ratcliffe will part ways with Erik ten Hag at the end of the season. The Dutchman led the Red Devils to another crushing defeat on Monday night when they were humiliated by Crystal Palace in a display which has heaped further pressure on the manager.
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United have won just one of their last seven Premier League matches, when they came from behind to beat relegation-battling Sheffield United, and their self-destruction has seen them drop out of the European places.
Following Chelsea’s win against West Ham over the weekend, United headed to Selhurst Park with the hope of reclaiming seventh-place from their rivals. However, the display was not of a team battling for European football.
A brace from Michael Olise, a fierce strike from Jean-Philippe Mateta and a close-range effort from Tyrick Mitchell saw Palace cruise to a 4-0 win over the Red Devils, prompting Ten Hag to publicly insist that he should remain in the Old Trafford dugout next season amid growing scrutiny over his job.
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But United players feel that the ex-Ajax boss’ pleas are likely to fall on deaf ears. According to the Daily Mail, leading players believe that Sir Jim Ratcliffe will opt to part ways with Ten Hag at the end of the season and rule that he will not be a part of his project.
Ratcliffe has refused to back the Red Devils boss publicly and instead pointed towards a review of his position this summer, and that lack of confidence has ‘seeped’ into the dressing room and led to there being a widespread feeling of uncertainty behind the scenes.
United have been linked with several managerial options ahead of this summer, including Bayern Munich boss Thomas Tuchel and Brighton’s Roberto De Zerbi. But Ten Hag believes that he still has what it takes to guide his side back to glory, saying after the defeat: “Our worst defeat. We should have kept fighting like the fans did. It’s clear, this is underperforming. It’s by far not good enough. We are very disappointed. We should have kept fighting like the fans did.
“I will keep fighting. I prepared the team in the best way I could do. It was by far not good enough and I have to take responsibility for that. I will find energy and prepare for Sunday’s game [against Arsenal].”
