The offer by Manchester United to extend Erik ten Hag’s contract by one year in the summer, according to talkSPORT presenter Jason Cundy, indicates that “they’re not backing” the manager.
Ten Hag’s tenure as United’s manager appears to be coming to an end, according to Cundy, who examined the team’s sad performance under Ten Hag at the beginning of the 2024–2025 season. He continued by identifying the logical successor to Ten Hag as former United great and newly hired assistant coach Ruud van Nistelrooy.
After Ten Hag led the team to its lowest-ever Premier League finish at the end of the previous season, the new Old Trafford hierarchy took months to decide whether to continue with him. He was given a further one-year contract in July after defeating rivals Manchester City in the FA Cup final.
The managers of United were also very busy during the transfer window, adding five major players for a total of more than £150 million to expand Ten Hag’s choices. Ten Hag’s status is now in danger once more due to their dismal start to the new season—two Premier League losses in three games.
Cundy, a former defender for Chelsea and Tottenham, thinks that Ten Hag’s reign would come to an end if Southampton defeats them on Saturday. He supported his claim by saying that the United management will not support him, as seen by their decision to simply offer him a one-year deal and to have Van Nistelrooy ready to step in as a simple replacement.
“They gave him one year added to one year,” Cundy stated on talkSPORT. That is essentially stating, “We’ve looked around, we’ve done the sniff test, and there’s no one out there we like the smell of, so we’re going to stick with this stink,” rather than endorsing the management. They essentially believe that the devil is better right now.
He went on, “Ten Hag’s issue is that he’s currently in a bad place. There is no support from the owners for him. That one-year extension is one of the worst ways to support a manager. It’s the players who are supporting the endeavour, not Ten Hag, who made the player acquisitions. A three-year contract would be ideal!
Say to the manager, “I believe in you. Let’s do this now. Let’s do another three on top of one year and give you four years,” if you genuinely support him. “There’s nothing out there that we fancy right now, so we’ll bring in Van Nistelrooy to help,” they are saying as they sit there.
“Everyone is aware of how this will conclude. Van Nistelrooy knows it, Ten Hag knows it, Sir Jim Ratcliffe knows it, and the players know it. The only uncertainty is when.
In April 2022, Ten Hag was officially announced as United’s manager, taking over for Ralf Rangnick. Since taking over that summer, he has won two titles and qualified his team for the Champions League in his first season.
48-year-old Van Nistelrooy oversaw PSV Eindhoven from March 2022 until the conclusion of the 2022–2023 season. He quit the team with one game remaining because of a lack of support from his teammates. In July, the former striker, who played for United for five years and scored 150 goals, inked a two-year contract to serve as Ten Hag’s assistant.