English Premier League giants Manchester United fired coach Erik ten Hag on Monday, after two-and-a-half years at the helm of the storied club.
The Dutchman was appointed in April 2022 and won the 2023 Carabao Cup and 2024 F.A. Cup during his time in charge.
But the club failed to qualify for this season’s Champions League, Europe’s premier competition, and currently sits 14th in the Premier League table after making its worst start to a season in 35 years.
Ten Hag was informed of the decision less than 24 hours after a 2-1 defeat to West Ham United.
“We are grateful to Erik for everything he has done during his time with us and wish him well for the future,” the club said in a statement.
It said that assistant coach Ruud van Nistelrooy, a forward for the club during its time at the summit of English soccer in the 2000s, will take charge as interim head coach while a permanent replacement is recruited.
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He will be the latest figure tasked with turning around the fortunes of the club, which has struggled to recapture its former glories since the retirement of its legendary, long-time coach Sir Alex Ferguson in 2014.
After more than two decades of dominance under the Scotsman, Man United has cycled through a number of coaches and won occasional trophies in recent years. But consistent success has proved elusive, with crosstown rivals Manchester City instead dominating the sport, powered by investment from Abu Dhabi that is now the subject of a court battle — a bitter reality for fans of United, who are used to contending for top honors every year.
The appointment of Ten Hag, who had a recent history of coaching exciting sides and young players, was supposed to breathe new life into the club.
But the fans lost faith after two years of uninspiring performances despite a wave of big-money signings. Brazilian winger Antony, a favorite of ten Hag from his time in charge of Dutch giants Ajax, exemplified the coach’s transfer market failings.
Speculation about Ten Hag’s future was fueled when the club’s new minority owner, British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe, refused to give assurances in early October.
A fourth loss this season, in which the formerly free-scoring side has found the net just eight times in nine matches, sealed the coach’s fate.
They will now turn to Van Nistelrooy, himself a renowned scorer as a player, to try and repeat that success from the sidelines.
