Ten Hag a 'dead man walking' at Man Utd after Ratcliffe takeover

Tom Weber

• Updated: 26 Dec 2023 09:18 GMT
• 3 min read

Erik ten Hag's days as Manchester United boss are numbered, according to ex-Premier League player Chris Sutton.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has completed his acquisition of a 25 per cent stake in Man Utd, finally putting an end to the year-long takeover saga. Though not the full, 100% takeover many Red Devils fans had wanted, Ratcliffe and INEOS have been given control of the sporting side of things and will look to turn things around.

United have endured a dire start to the campaign - their worst since 1930 - with 13 losses from 26 games and pressure on Erik ten Hag is once again mounting after losing to West Ham at the weekend. Ratcliffe, it is believed, won't stand for this mediocrity.

The INEOS chief will shake things up at the club and several senior figures are expected to follow former CEO Richard Arnold on the way out, with Ratcliffe's confidants replacing them. Whether Ten Hag already has to fear for his job at this stage remains to be seen, but Chris Sutton believes that it is only a matter of time before Ratcliffe will pull the trigger.

Ten Hag a 'dead man walking'

Speaking on the It's All Kicking Off Podcast with Ian Ladyman, Sutton fired several shots at Ten Hag. Ladyman started off the discussion by saying: "You and I have defended Erik ten Hag and stuck up for him, talking about the good things he's done at Manchester United and the need for patience."

"I tell you what, right now, in advance of Jim Ratcliffe's INEOS investment arriving at Old Trafford pretty soon, he's a dead man walking. He looks like a dead man walking to me now and I hate to say that. He's sleepwalking, he looks to me like he's sleepwalking towards the door."

Sutton concurred with the assessment, adding: "I think your terminology of a dead man walking is right. What really worries me about him at this moment in time is that I don't know what game he's watching when he comes out afterwards and says that they performed well."

"You know they didn't perform well by Manchester United's standards against West Ham. They didn't perform well when we sat at Old Trafford and Bayern Munich won without breaking sweat. That's a major worry and there are issues all over the park. I mean, where do you start?"