Erik ten Hag: Dutchman's future at Manchester United 'not my call ...

Updated 04/10/2024 at 16:44 GMT

Manchester United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe was reluctant to give any indication over the future of Erik ten Hag as manager of the club, saying the decision is "not my call".

And he said decisions over Ten Hag's future at the club are not in his hands.

BBC Sport asked Ratcliffe whether he still had faith in Ten Hag in Barcelona on Friday, to which he replied: "I don’t want to answer that question.

"I like Erik. I think he’s a very good coach, but at the end of the day it's not my call.

"It's the management team that's running Manchester United that have to decide how we best run the team in many different respects.

"But that team that's running Manchester United has only been together since June or July. They weren't there in January, February, March or April – [CEO] Omar [Berrada], [sporting director] Dan Ashworth – they only arrived in July.

"They’ve only been there … you can count it in weeks almost – they've not been there a long time, so they need to take stock and make some sensible decisions.

"Our objective is very clear: we want to take Manchester United back to where it should be, and it's not there yet, obviously. That's very clear."

‘I don’t have that concern’ – Ten Hag confident job is safe despite harrowing Spurs loss

United suffered their worst-ever Premier League finish in the 2023/24 campaign in eighth-place. Ten Hag, however, has brought silverware back to Old Trafford since his appointment in 2022, winning the Carabao Cup in his debut campaign before securing the FA Cup trophy last season – beating rivals Manchester City in the final.

Two of United's three victories this term have come against League One side Barnsley in the Carabao Cup and Southampton in the Premier League – who are winless so far in their return to the top-flight.

The Red Devils have also suffered two heavy defeats, first against Arne Slot's Liverpool with a 3-0 loss at Old Trafford before a damning setback by the same scoreline against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.

"Don't judge us in this moment," he said. "Judge us at the end of the season."

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