Why Man Utd kept Erik ten Hag as manager - revealed

Sir Jim Ratcliffe says Manchester United decided to keep Erik ten Hag as manager after determining that the Dutchman is not to blame for the club's problems.

Ten Hag's future was in serious doubt heading into Ratcliffe's post-season review, with some reports even going as far as to state that the decision to sack the former Ajax boss had already been made weeks earlier.

Talks were held with a number of potential replacements, including Thomas Tuchel, but United ultimately declined to advance their interest and instead committed to Ten Hag, who is now in talks over a contract extension.

Explaining the decision to stick with Ten Hag, Ratcliffe told The Times CEO Summit: "We kept Erik ten Hag because he's a good coach. He did well at Ajax.

"The man in the street likes to think the coach is everything, and maybe it was in the days of Sir Alex Ferguson.

"We've had a whole series of good coaches since then, and none have succeeded. The root of the problem is not the coach, it’s the environment around him. That’s what we’re now looking at. We have to address that environment."

Ratcliffe made a similar point during a recent interview with Bloomberg.

"The coach isn't the central issue at Manchester United," he said. "It's a sports club. It needs to be competitive, it needs a degree of intensity, but with a supportive side to it because you are dealing with players who are relatively young. It hasn't had that type of environment historically."

Ratcliffe and his team have been busy remodelling United behind the scenes. Omar Berrada is joining as chief executive next month and Jason Wilcox has begun work as the club's new technical director.

Dan Ashworth is the preferred sporting director but an agreement over compensation has yet to be reached with Newcastle United, who have placed Ashworth on gardening leave for the time being.

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