After two and a half years in charge of the Red Devils at Old Trafford, Erik Ten Hag, who moved to the Premier League from Dutch giants Ajax, has today been sacked by the club after a poor week both domestically and in Europe.
Drawing 1-1 with Fenerbahce was enough to buy the Dutchman a few days, but the final nail in the coffin was a 2-1 loss away to West Ham United yesterday.
The sacking of Erik Ten Hag has slowly come over his time at the club. While he led them to a league cup victory in 2023 and an FA Cup victory last season, Manchester United's league form has dipped since his third-place finish in the first season, finishing 8th in the second, and currently 14th, having also struggled in European competition so far this season.
Ten Hag survived the summer after an FA Cup final victory over rivals Manchester City in May, which came despite United finishing 8th last season, their lowest-ever Premier League finish, and crashing out of the Champions League before Christmas.
A series of poor results this season, including a 3 - 0 home defeats to both Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool, dented their start to the season. As a result, they currently sit 14th after nine matches with only three wins so far.
Ten Hag was Man United's fifth manager in eleven years since Sir Alex Ferguson's departure, and while they won silverware, they did not win the Premier League in that time frame.
The poor results were not just a Ten Hag issue. Despite the glimpses of success, he ultimately struggled during his time in Manchester. With the poor form especially evident this season, no one can say they are shocked that the club eventually sacked him.
Ultimately, for a club of Manchester United's size and stature not only in England but as a global brand with a fanbase to match it, the results needed to improve if they are to grant part-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe's wishes and knock Manchester City "Off Their Perch."
However, when asked recently before Ten Hag's departure, he claimed that it was not his decision to make and that ultimately a poor game against Fenerbahce and the 2 - 1 loss to West Ham gave the powers above all they needed to sack the Dutchman.
What Happens Next For Manchester United?
As things stand, Ruud Van Nistelrooy has been appointed interim head coach. He is considered a United legend who scored 150 goals in 219 appearances and picked up a clean sweep of trophies.
Since retiring as a player in 2013, he has had some coaching experience, most notably during his stint as head coach at PSV Eindhoven, where he helped them win the KNVB Cup.
Manchester United have four games left before the next international break. The first is in the Carabao Cup against Leicester, which only gives Van Nistelrooy two days to implement his plans. However, he was initially brought into Old Trafford as an assistant to Ten Hag to familiarise himself with the squad.
Although he may not be able to implement his ideas and playing philosophy entirely, he can potentially have a better start than previous interim coaches.
However, next Sunday, Manchester United will have the challenge of hosting Chelsea, who are currently flying in 5th place and, unlike Manchester United, are in great form with a win in the league and European competition in their last two matches. It looks like a tough start to life for Van Nistelrooy in the hot seat of being a Manchester United manager.
Whilst the fixtures may look challenging, the international break may come at a good time for the club as they can look to recover from a tough run up to the break.
The bonus for Van Nistelrooy is that United have six of their next seven matches at Old Trafford before a trip to Arsenal at the start of December; the only away game in that period comes at Portman Road against Ipswich.
So whilst the Carabao Cup tie against Leicester may not matter too much in itself for United's season, it could certainly set the tone for a hugely significant run of fixtures.
Suppose the ownership of Manchester United wants the club to improve on the pitch. In that case, ultimately, they will need to take this time to seriously evaluate which manager is capable of the task at hand, as it is ultimately a giant mess and will need to finish someone that can balance both on-field issues such as player performance and behaviour.
At the same time, United need someone who can control the squad; even experienced managed such as Louis van Gaal and Jose Mourinho have struggled to control such a difficult squad in recent years.
This mixture of pressure has undoubtedly not helped anyone who has taken a seat in the Old Trafford dugout and is undoubtedly why the managerial carousel at Manchester United has spun once again.
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