Amidst the swirling rumors, a number of Manchester United players are under the impression that Erik ten Hag is bracing for his dismissal, even though he has confidently declared that he harbors “no doubts” regarding his tenure at Old Trafford for the upcoming season.
The conjecture around Ten Hag’s position intensified especially after Sir Jim Ratcliffe acquired a minority share in the club. As the head of INEOS, Ratcliffe has assumed complete command of the football department, initiating several significant alterations.
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Omar Berrada has stepped in as the new CEO, and there are plans to appoint Dan Ashworth and Jason Wilcox as the club’s forthcoming sporting director and technical director.
A piece from the Sun suggests that a sentiment is brewing among some of the team’s key players that Ten Hag has mentally prepared for his potential exit.
According to the article, the squad has picked up on a shift in Ten Hag’s attitude, hinting that he anticipates Ratcliffe might opt for a managerial change during the off-season. This follows Ratcliffe’s decision not to publicly endorse Ten Hag in February.
“I’m not going to comment on the job he’s done because that would be inappropriate,” he said when asked about Ten Hag’s future. “What is relevant to that question is that, if you look at the 11 years that have gone since David Gill and Sir Alex stepped down, there has been a whole series of coaches.
“Some of them were very good but none of them has been successful or survived for very long. You can’t blame all the coaches. The only conclusion is that the environment in which they were working didn’t work.
“Erik’s been in that environment and what we have to do is make sure that environment, the organisation, the people in the structure, are right. We have to do that bit, so I’m not really focused on the coach but on getting that bit right.
“It’s not for me to judge that. But we’ve made some quite difficult decisions in our time in business. We’ll just be logical about it, assess the facts and make a fair judgement. We’re not a brutal organisation really.
“But sometimes you do have to make decisions, that may not be popular.” Ten Hag did insist earlier this month that he remains confident he will still be in charge next season, with United currently sixth in the Premier League and 11 points off the top four.
“I don’t have any doubts,” Ten Hag told Sky Sports. “I’m just focusing on my job, focusing on this process, in this project. I really love to be here, I’m enjoying it. For me it’s a challenge. It will not go always in the right way, it’s not going always the results in the way we wanted but I’m sure we’re in the right direction and we will get where we want to be.”
