Erik ten Hag may well end up back at his old club Ajax the way things are going for Manchester United, Chris Sutton and Ian Ladyman joked on It’s All Kicking Off.
Ten Hag’s United remarkably emerged with a 2-2 draw from Sunday’s showdown with arch-rivals Liverpool, despite being dominated for large chunks of the contest.
On the same afternoon over in the Netherlands, Ajax’s nightmare season continued as their bitter foes Feyenoord thrashed them 6-0 – their heaviest-ever Eredivisie defeat.
England midfielder Jordan Henderson missed the match through injury but it’s unlikely his presence would have made much difference as Ajax capitulated.
That result leaves them 33 points adrift of Eredivisie leaders PSV Eindhoven and without any hope of qualifying for the Champions League next season.
With Ten Hag’s job at United far from certain beyond the summer as new part-owners Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Ineos weigh up his future, Sutton joked: ‘Maybe they’ll get Erik back!’
Mail Sport football editor Ladyman replied: ‘You may have hit on something there despite the fact it was meant to be a joke.’
Ten Hag was appointed United manager in 2022 on the strength of his achievements with Ajax, where he won three Dutch league titles, two Dutch Cups and took them to the Champions League semi-finals in 2019.
After a successful first season at Old Trafford, which saw United win the Carabao Cup and finish third in the Premier League, things have regressed dramatically for Ten Hag this season.
United have thrown away seven points from winning positions in the past week alone and face an uphill struggle to make next season’s Champions League.
Only winning the FA Cup may save Ten Hag, with United set to face Championship Coventry City at Wembley in two weeks’ time.
On the United boss, Ladyman said: ‘They were awful, United. Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Dave Brailsford were there and what they saw will not encourage them to think there is something to work with with Erik ten Hag and that team.
‘They’re not stupid. They are not football experts but they are sporting people and they know what a capable sporting outfit is meant to look like and that is not it.
‘I think yesterday works against Ten Hag, forget the result, just watching them play shows you everything you need to know.’
Mail Sport columnist Sutton reminded his co-host that he’d branded Ten Hag ‘Erik ten Games’ earlier in the season.
‘Erik ten Months’ would have maybe been closer,’ Sutton admitted.
‘Essentially, results are important but you can’t kid people, you can’t paper over the cracks this season. They haven’t controlled games like they should be controlling games.
‘It is all about the bigger pictures, it is all about looking at teams and styles, who are ahead of you, and trying to get to that level, the level of Manchester City, even the identity you see at Tottenham or Arsenal, they are miles ahead of Manchester United.’
Ladyman replied: ‘I have come around to that. I started this season on this podcast by saying Ten Hag was the best thing United had going for them and I was wrong.’
