Former Manchester United striker Dion Dublin believes the Red Devils should not sack under-pressure manager Erik ten Hag, even if they lose Sunday’s Emirates FA Cup final rivals against Manchester City.

Amid a turbulent season, United faltered to finish eighth in the Premier League, their lowest finish in the top-flight since the 1989-90 season. Amid injury woes and a lack of form, the Red Devils could now also miss out on qualifying for Europe for the first time since the 2013-14 season.

Questions have been mounting over Ten Hag’s future at the club, with Mail Sport previously reporting that Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his leadership team will not part ways with the Dutchman before Saturday’s final, but have been conducting a review of the United manager’s suitability.

‘I personally I like Mr Ten Hag. I like him. I’ve interviewed him three times for BBC Football Focus. And he’s been he’s been brilliant,’ Dublin said to Mail Sport, while speaking on The Race to the Emirates FA Cup Challenge.

‘He knows what he wants to achieve. Has he got the tools? Yes. Are they performing to the level that he needs? And they want to perform to? Possibly not.

‘Does he need to add? Yes. I believe they keep him. I think they should keep him. I think he’s got the right philosophy. I like that he’s stubborn on the odd occasion. He doesn’t listen to the fans.’

After months of speculation over his future at the club, Dublin, who also believes United have a 50/50 shot at beating City on Saturday, lauded Ten Hag for his tenacity and urged Ratcliffe and his leadership team not to part ways with the Dutchman.

‘He doesn’t get bogged down with what he thinks he shouldn’t be doing, so he stays on side with the press and stays on side with the planes,’ Dublin said.

‘He’s doing it for the good of Manchester United and being successful. And I like him and I think they should keep him.’

Man United come into Saturday’s game as second favourites to their city rivals, who last weekend claimed their fourth consecutive Premier League title.

While the odds are against United to win at Wembley, a victory could go some way in bolstering Ten Hag’s case to stay in the hot seat and simultaneously see United qualify for a place in next season’s Europa Conference League.

For Dublin, who featured in Aston Villa’s FA Cup final against Chelsea in 2000, United still have a 50/50 shot to defeat City on Saturday.

‘I think if you spoke to any of the Man United staff, players and fans, they’ll say ‘[it’s been a] poor season.

‘It is a poor season, because they should be in the top two all the time. That’s what they have set their standards on. It’s been an indifferent season,’ he said.

‘They are not where they want to be as players, as a football club and as fans. Having been fortunate enough to have played in a Cup final when it becomes this important, when you’re walking out on the pitch at the Emirates FA Cup Final everything changes.

‘Everything changes. It’s just all about a 50/50 scrap, who’s not going to make mistakes, and who’s going to make sure that their game is better than their opponent’s game. That is it.

‘It’s a 50/50 game. Take out the stats. Take out the form. It doesn’t matter. Take out that Man City are better than Man United – that’s a fact, they are. Nobody can complain with that fact. However, when you walk out on the pitch over the white line level pegging.’

Emirates have partnered with the Football Association ahead of this weekend’s final to challenge four pairs of fans to take on The Race to the Emirates FA Cup Final.

Supporters were tasked with travelling from their favourite team’s stadium to the Emirates airport check-in desk at a nearby airport in the fastest time, encountering several challenges along the way.

Legendary footballing quartet, Ray Parlour, Shay Given, Wes Brown and Dublin, posed questions to the fans during the challenge. They also offered words of encouragement as the participants along the way, as they worked to win a range of exciting prizes, holiday to Dubai courtesy of Emirates and tickets to the Emirates FA Cup Final at Wembley.

Dublin met two lifelong Aston Villa fans outside Villa Park and pointed them towards their first challenge. Speaking on his role in the challenge, the former Aston Villa striker stated it was special to share stories and memories from his playing career with those who have supported him.

‘My little part has been great. It’s been great fun,’ he told Mail Sport. ‘And there’s nothing better for somebody in my position, who’s very luckily played the game and had fans watching me play, to be able to give back a little bit to people that have supported you and watched you play, watched you lose and watched you miss chances, to put a smile on their face and give them something that they’ll never forget.’

Dublin enjoyed a distinguished career as a professional footballer, winning two Premier League titles during his Manchester United during a two-year spell at the club.

He’d subsequently move to Coventry City, where he’d be crowned the Premier League’s top scorer, alongside Michael Owen and Chris Sutton, during the 1997-98 season before moving to Aston Villa where he scored 57 goals across 189 appearances in all competitions for the club.

‘It’s a bigger picture thing, to be honest,’ he added. ‘I think the handing over of the tickets and the chance to speak to people. Fans don’t get a chance to speak to the old boys like me – the ones that used to play – they don’t really get a chance.

‘They see us on the pitch. They might see us getting out of our cars, or arriving and they might get an autograph or a picture. But they never get a chance to actually speak to us and have a coffee and a chat.

‘And I think it’s nice to pass on a few stories you can tell them about certain games. They actually said to me on the day: “Dion, what about the Arsenal game? It was amazing”. And I go: “What you didn’t know about that was…” And I told them what happened at hal-ftime. And they say: “Oh really! Is that why?” You know, and you can enlighten them on something new. So I think that’s really important.’

Emirates has challenged fans to travel from their favourite team’s stadium to the Emirates airport check-in desk in the quickest time. Along the way they met footballing legends, answered fan-focused quizzes and harnessed the need for speed. Find out which fans completed the challenge in the quickest time, winning tickets to the Emirates FA Cup Final and a trip to Dubai.