Sir Jim Ratcliffe REFUSES to back under-fire Man Utd boss Erik ten Hag and reveals ‘it’s not my decision’ if he’s sacked
He has revealed who will make the decision
SIR JIM RATCLIFFE has refused to back Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag.
Instead, the Red Devils co-owner has revealed “it’s not my decision” if the under-fire boss is sacked.
Ten Hag is under mounting pressure at Old Trafford following a slow start to the new season.
His side are currently 13th in the Premier League after winning just two of their opening six matches.
Sunday’s 3-0 home defeat to Tottenham added to his woes United suffered their third league defeat of the campaign.
Meanwhile, a stoppage time header from Harry Maguire was needed to rescue a draw against Porto in the Europa League on Thursday.
Ten Hag, who had his contract extended in July, could now be the first managerial casualty of the season.
However, Ratcliffe has admitted it will not be up to him if the Dutchman stays or goes.
Asked if he has faith in Ten Hag, the British billionaire told : “I don’t want to answer that question…
“I like Erik. I think he’s a very good coach but at the end of the day it’s not my call, it’s the management team that’s running Manchester United that have to decide how we best run the team in many different respects.
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“But that team that’s running Manchester United has only been together since June or July.
“They weren’t there in January, February, March or April – [CEO] Omar [Berrada], [sporting director] Dan Ashworth – they only arrived in July.
Man Utd ratings vs Porto
MAN UTD ended up with a 3-3 draw after throwing away a 2-0 lead away to Porto.
Here’s how SunSport’s Dylan Terry rated the Red Devils’ stars performances in Portugal
Andre Onana – 6/10
Reacted brilliantly the first time he was called into action with a flying save, only for Porto to score the rebound.
Porto then scored with their next shot on target too – Omorodion’s header – and Onana could do little about the excellent finish for Porto’s third.
Made two great stops to keep Man Utd in the game.
Noussair Mazraoui – 4
Looked fairly stable in the first 45 minutes but waned as the game went on.
All at sea at the start of the second half as Porto cut through the right-hand side of Man Utd’s defence with ease.
Matthijs de Ligt – 4
Looked imposing in the air as he dealt with Porto’s crosses from both sides, but then failed to get in front of Omorodion for the hosts’ second goal.
Like most of the Man Utd side, his performance dropped as the game went on and he was bullied by Porto’s No9.
Lisandro Martinez – 4
Should have reacted quicker for the first Porto goal as Pepe got ahead of him to nod into an empty net – with Martinez static on the six-yard box.
There is clearly not much of a partnership with De Ligt as Porto pulled them apart all evening.
Diogo Dalot – 4
Porto enjoyed a lot of success down Man Utd’s left-hand side and Dalot looked all at sea on several occasions.
Had little help from Martinez but still looked exposed.
Casemiro – 3
Anonymous yet again in Man Utd’s midfield – the ball just passes him by.
Could not even manage one of his customary fouls.
Christian Eriksen – 5
Looked leggy out of possession but produced an impressive run before laying it off to Hojlund for Man Utd’s second goal.
Then failed to make much more of an impact and his delivery from wide areas left a lot to be desired.
Bruno Fernandes – 4
A damning indictment of Man Utd’s current predicament as Fernandes was shown a red card for a second successive game.
Two high boots, two yellow cards, and another early bath for the Portuguese playmaker – who had worked tirelessly prior to his dismissal.
Amad Diallo – 5
Very quiet aside from one burst through the middle as Rashford received all of the ball over the other side.
Replaced by Antony who arguably created even less.
Rasmus Hojlund – 7
Made his case for starting ahead of Joshua Zirkzee with a goal, firing beyond Costa at the near post.
Held it up and then showed his strength and pace to run at Porto before the break – showing little rustiness in his first start of the season.
Marcus Rashford – 8
Rashford showed his directness for the opening goal, driving at the Porto back line and forcing the error from Costa.
A constant threat in the first half as he assisted Hojlund’s strike.
But he was then surprisingly hooked at the break, a decision that will need an explanation from Ten Hag.
“They’ve only been there…you can count it in weeks almost – they’ve not been there a long time so they need to take stock and make some sensible decisions.
“Our objective is very clear – we want to take Manchester United back to where it should be, and it’s not there yet, obviously – that’s very clear.”
Ten Hag has been in charge since replacing interim boss Ralf Rangnick in the summer of 2022.
As for Ratcliffe, he purchased a 27.7 per cent stake in the club back in February and has since overhauled the football operations at United.
Newly-appointed CEO Omar Berrada and sporting director Dan Ashworth are now overseeing Ten Hag’s performance.
The United boss’ next test comes on Sunday, when his side visit Aston Villa in their final match before the international break.
