Manchester United have sacked manager Erik ten Hag following the club's disappointing start to the season that sees them sit 14th in the Premier League table.
The Dutch coach, who took over at Old Trafford in the summer of 2022, saw his side fall to a frustrating 2-1 defeat at West Ham United on Sunday after securing just three wins from their opening nine league games.
They have also won just one of their last eight matches across all competitions and have begun their Europa League campaign with three successive draws.
“Erik ten Hag has left his role as Manchester United men's first-team manager,” said the club in a statement.
“Erik was appointed in April 2022 and led the club to two domestic trophies, winning the Carabao Cup in 2023 and the FA Cup in 2024.
“We are grateful to Erik for everything he has done during his time with us and wish him well for the future.
“Ruud van Nistelrooy will take charge of the team as interim head coach, supported by the current coaching team, while a permanent head coach is recruited.”
Man United managers total spend post Ferguson
Ten Hag left Dutch side Ajax to become the fifth permanent manager at United since Alex Ferguson retired in 2013, following David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. German coach Ralf Rangnick had been in interim charge following Solskjaer's sacking in November 2021.
In his first season in charge, Ten Hag guided United to a third-place finish in the Premier League, as well as winning the League Cup after beating Newcastle United 2-0 at Wembley Stadium in what was the club's first trophy in six years.
The cracks quickly started appearing in his second season, though. United failed to make it through to the Champions League knockout stage after they finished bottom of their group – behind Bayern Munich, Copenhagen and Galatasaray – ending their European campaign before Christmas.
Their form in the Premier League was even more problematic as they finished the season eighth in the table in what was their lowest finish since 1990.
With the arrival of British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe as co-owner last December, the pressure had been building on Ten Hag with reports suggesting the Dutchman was set to be sacked during the summer following an internal performance review of the whole club.
But Ten Hag then secured a trophy for the second consecutive season when they surprisingly beat Manchester City in the FA Cup final, denying their local rivals a domestic double and earning himself a contract extension during the summer.
“In my discussions with the club, we have found complete unity in our vision for reaching those goals, and we are all strongly committed to making that journey together,” said Ten Hag after signing a deal that should have secured his future until 2026.
But there have been few signs that the new campaign was bringing a change in fortunes for Ten Hag who saw his side struggle for form, falling to league defeats against Brighton, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur – the latter two both humiliating 3-0 hammerings at Old Trafford.
In the second tier Europa League, United are 21st of 36 teams in the revamped competition after draws with FC Twente, Porto and Fenerbache, who are coached by former manager Mourinho.
Then on Sunday, Ten Hag's team conceded a controversial injury-time penalty at the London Stadium that Jarrod Bowen converted to earn three points for a Hammers outfit that had been thrashed 4-1 by Spurs the previous weekend.
Biggest club net spends during Ten Hag reign
Ten Hag called the defeat “unfair and unjust” after Matthijs de Ligt's challenge on Danny Ings was judged to be a penalty by referee David Coote after he had been sent to the pitchside monitor by VAR after originally ignoring West Ham appeals, but the fact remains United should have been out of sight by half-time after missing a host of chances.
“That is definitely not a clear and obvious mistake from the on-field referee,” insisted Ten Hag. “That's a third time I have felt injustice in the season and it has a big impact on our team and on our scores and where we are in the table. It's not right.”
Less than a day later, Ten Hag was gone with BBC Sport reporting that club sources were saying that, while it had been a difficult decision, it was a unanimous one with the 54-year-old informed on Monday morning.
With 70 wins from 128 games in charge, Ten Hag's 54.7 per cent win record is actually the second best of any United manager since Ferguson's exit – behind only Mourinho's 58.3 per cent. The Dutchman lost 27.3 per cent of his games though, ahead of only Moyes (29.4 per cent) and Ralf Rangnick (27.6)
Ten Hag also enjoyed a huge amount of backing in the transfer market, spending more than £560 million during his spell, more than any of the other post-Ferguson coaches, with Solskjaer the next highest spender at £400m.
