Manchester United CEO Omar Berrada has given Erik ten Hag his full backing in an interview conducted before Sunday’s defeat to Liverpool.
Despite winning the FA Cup last season, which made it two trophies in as many seasons for Ten Hag, the Dutchman guided United to a lowly eighth placed finish and also they also came bottom of their Champions League draw.
Following a thorough end of season review in which the Red Devils openly spoke to other managers, Ineos decided to stick with the Dutchman and activated the one year extension in his contract keeping him at the Old Trafford until 2026.
Berrada gives backing to Ten Hag
Despite being backed in the transfer market with five new signings coming through the door including Matthijs de Ligt, Leny Yoro and Manuel Ugarte things don’t look much different to last season.
United’s 3-0 defeat to arch rivals Liverpool on Sunday made it two defeats from their first three Premier League games, with the pressure likely building on Ten Hag.
In an interview given before the game, new United CEO Berrada offered his full backing to the former Ajax boss.
“Do we still believe in Erik? Absolutely,” Berrada told Mail Sport.
“We think Erik is the right coach for us and we’re fully backing him. We’re going to continue working very closely to help him get the best results out of the team.”
Quite what Berrada made of the defeat to Liverpool is unknown, but it certainly appears that Ten Hag retains the backing of the board despite a poor start to the season.
Ten Hag will be under no illusion that things need to change and quickly, with it a huge concern that in his third year in charge his team still seemingly appear so disjointed and ragged.
The Dutchman will be aware of the pressure he’s under and it appears he’s slightly on edge after biting back at a journalist after the defeat to Liverpool.
It seemingly has a feeling of when rather than if in regards to Ten Hag being sacked by the club, and he faces a really difficult task to get United performing well again.