Manchester United have had eight different managers since Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure and they are yet to find one capable of leading them back to their glory years.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe made no effort to hide the fact that discussions with managerial candidates were taking place before the end of the season.
Ultimately, he chose to stick rather than twist with Erik ten Hag staying in the Old Trafford hot seat next season after his FA Cup triumph.
The Dutchman now has two trophies in his two seasons as manager – a record only topped by Jose Mourinho in the post-Ferguson years.
Ten Hag’s predecessor, Ralf Rangnick, only lasted six months in the job after agreeing to take interim charge of the club in December 2021.
Following his Manchester United misery Rangnick returned to management with Austria who are swiftly becoming a popular choice to be the dark horse at Euro 2024.
Manchester United fans should be ‘worried’ by Ralf Rangnick
Rangnick’s Austria side have been a surprise package in Germany, beating tournament-favourites France to the top of Group D.
Paul Merson believes that Rangnick’s success on the international stage should be ringing alarm bells for Manchester United fans.
Speaking on the Football’s Greatest Podcast, he said: “If I was a Manchester United fan I’d be worried. I’d be looking and thinking that’s an inside job [Rangnick’s sacking].
“Blaming managers, people saying that Ten Hag isn’t good enough and Rangnick coming with laughing and jokes – really? Look what he has done at Austria.
“They look like one of the teams that could cause major problems.
“It just shows that when Rangnick has come in and done what he has done – that would worry me if I was a Manchester United fan. I’d be saying ‘wait a minute, he’s not as bad as everyone thought he was’.
“So is it the players’ attitude and the players behind the scenes who are mugging these managers off?”
Manchester United must back Erik ten Hag
Manchester United have been through a vicious cycle of sacking managers since Ferguson’s departure and it came dangerously close to repeating itself with Ten Hag last season.
Looking back at Rangnick, his comment on the club needing ‘open heart surgery’ could not have been more accurate.
As a manager, Rangnick failed to get the best out of United’s squad – but it’s hard to name a manager who has in the past decade.
Ten Hag has made bold decisions across the board since arriving at Old Trafford and the FA Cup win showed that progress is also being made on the pitch.
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