Erik ten Hag’s turbulent Manchester United reign has finally come to an end.
The Manchester United ownership have decided to pull the plug on the Dutchman’s time in charge following a controversial 2-1 defeat by West Ham United in the Premier League on Sunday.
It comes amidst a torrid start to the 2024-25 campaign that sees the Red Devils sitting 14th in the league table.
In the summer, it appeared Ten Hag had already been given a stay of execution after new co-owners Ineos had reportedly spoken to potential candidates before giving the former Ajax boss a new contract.
However, the result at the weekend looks to have been the final straw.
But are the club right to cut ties with Ten Hag?
Across all competitions in his 850 days in charge, the 54-year-old has managed 128 games and won 72 of those, leaving him with a win percentage of 56%.
Among the six managers to have taken charge on a permanent or interim basis since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement, Ten Hag’s win percentage has him second only behind Jose Mourinho (58%).
His 56% is above Ole Gunnar Solskjaer (55%), Louis van Gaal (52%), David Moyes (51%) and Ralf Rangnick (37%).
When comparing his record in the Premier League to those former managers, it is a less pleasant picture for the Dutchman.
His points per game record of 1.72 ranks him below Mourinho (1.89), Solskjaer (1.81) and Van Gaal (1.79).
In fact, according to Opta, his goals per game record in the league of 1.45 is only above Ragnick’s 1.38, while his goals conceded per game figure of 1.32 is only below that of the German’s 1.32.
He also tops the rankings among the six for number of shots faced per-game with 14.74.
With these numbers during his spell, it may be somewhat surprising to find that, in a Premier League Table since the beginning of 2022-23, Manchester United would be sitting fifth with 146 points – just one behind high-flying Aston Villa.
Ten Hag’s time in charge hasn’t been without it’s success – a Carabao Cup and FA Cup in successive seasons is not to be sniffed at – but it seems the inconsistency and apparent lack of progress under the Dutchman has ultimately cost him his job.
