Sources revealed to ESPN that several technical representatives approached Manchester United due to doubts about the continuity of Ten Hag.
Representatives of several coaches have approached Manchester United believing that Erik ten Hag could be sacked from his position before the start of the next season, sources revealed to ESPN.
Ten Hag under pressure after 3-1 derby loss to Manchester City on Sunday, who left his team sixth in the Premier League standings.
The Dutchman has been told that securing the UEFA Champions League is vital to the club’s goal of investing in the team this summer and at the same time meet profit and sustainability requirements, but the result at the Etihad has made United slide to within 11 points of Aston Villa in fourth place with 11 games to play.
Ten Hag has been fully involved in planning for the summer, both in terms of identifying transfer targets and organizing the pre-season tour of the United States, but a source told ESPN that the 54-year-old head coach has not received any formal information from new minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe or his team that he will be in charge next season.
This has caused unemployed coaches and other people currently holding jobs to come forward to find out if there will be a vacancy.
United, according to sources, has collected information about what different coaches have planned for the future and what other interests there are in acquiring their services, but there have been no formal conversations with any candidate.
Liverpool, Bayern Munich, and Barcelona are looking for new coaches for next season and, according to sources, they are currently weighing options.
Ratcliffe’s team, led by Sir David Brailsford and Jean-Claude Blanc, is still finalizing the details of the new structure at Old Trafford, which will determine what profile of coach they want to take charge of the first team’s affairs.
Ten Hag has a contract until 2025 and, when asked about his meetings with Ratcliffe, he has said that the 71-year-old British billionaire “believes in me.”
After consecutive Premier League defeats to Fulham and City, Ten Hag faces a series of crucial games with a home game against Everton on Saturday followed by the FA Cup quarterfinal against Liverpool on March 17. Liverpool’s visit to Old Trafford is followed by the March international break and United’s next game against Brentford will be on March 30.
ESPN has contacted Manchester United for comment on the situation.