MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Manchester United finally ran out of patience and fired manager Erik ten Hag on Monday after a troubled start to the season which has left the 20-time English champions languishing in the Premier League amid a period of major upheaval at the storied club.
Ten Hag, who was hired in 2022, won two domestic cups in his 2 1/2 years in charge but paid the price for leading United to just three wins in nine league games in the opening months of this campaign.
There have been four defeats in there, too, including heavy beatings by fierce rival Liverpool and Tottenham. A 2-1 loss at West Ham on Sunday was Ten Hag's last game in charge, with the Dutchman departing with United in 14th place in the 20-team standings.
“Erik ten Hag has left his role as Manchester United men’s first-team manager,” United said.
“We are grateful," the club added, “to Erik for everything he has done during his time with us and wish him well for the future.”
United said Ruud van Nistelrooy, one of Ten Hag’s assistants and a former striker at the club, would be taking over as interim head coach while a permanent head coach is recruited.
The team's next game is at home to Leicester in the English League Cup on Wednesday.
Ten Hag joined from Dutch giant Ajax and was tasked with the responsibility of bringing the good times back to a club that has been in decline since former manager Alex Ferguson retired in 2013.
Despite winning the League Cup in 2023 and the FA Cup this year, United was showing no sign of improving on its worst league campaign in 34 years, having finished in eighth place last season.
Already 12 points behind first-place Manchester City in the Premier League, United — which never had a distinguishable style of play under Ten Hag — appears to have little hope of challenging for the title and is in danger of missing out on qualification for the lucrative Champions League once again.
Ten Hag only held onto his job following an unexpected victory over fierce rival Man City in the FA Cup final in May and an extensive end-of-year review by United. He was then handed a one-year extension to his contract to 2026.
However, the club’s new soccer leadership — fronted by new minority owner Jim Ratcliffe — was clearly unimpressed with the pace of change under Ten Hag.
Ratcliffe, the British billionaire, has taken over control of United’s soccer operations, with a new CEO, sporting director and technical director all installed in recent months. They now have to appoint a sixth permanent manager since Ferguson’s departure, following David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ten Hag.
"I don't think anybody will be truly shocked after what happened yesterday," former United defender Gary Neville said of the latest loss to West Ham.
“The fact they are in 14th is just unacceptable. You can't be 14th after nine games with the level of spending that has occurred, without being under significant pressure.”
___
James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson
___
More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
James Robson, The Associated Press
