Manchester United CEO Omar Berrada has given his full backing to Erik ten Hag in an interview ahead of Sunday’s defeat to Liverpool.
Despite winning the FA Cup last season, which made it two trophies in as many seasons for Ten Hag, the Dutchman guided United to an eighth-place finish and also finished bottom of their Champions League draw.
After a comprehensive end-of-season review in which the Red Devils spoke openly with other managers, Ineos decided to keep the Dutchman and activated a one-year extension to his contract until 2026.
Berrada supports Ten Hag
Despite being propped up in the transfer market with five new signings coming through the door, including Matthijs de Ligt, Leny Yoro and Manuel Ugarte, things don’t look much different to last season.
United’s 3-0 defeat at arch-rivals Liverpool on Sunday made it two defeats in their opening three Premier League games, with the pressure likely to be increased at Ten Hag.
In a pre-match interview, United’s new chief executive Berrada offered his full support to the former Ajax boss.
“Do we still believe in Erik? Absolutely,” said Berrada Mail Sport.
“We believe that Erik is the right coach for us and we support him. We will continue to work very closely to help him get the best results from the team.”
It is not known what Berrada made of the defeat to Liverpool, but it appears that Ten Hag retains the support of the board despite a poor start to the season.
Ten Hag will be under no illusions that things need to change and quickly, with major concerns that in his third year in charge, his team still looks so disjointed and patchy.
The Dutchman will be aware of the pressure he is under and appears to be a bit on the sidelines after biting a reporter following the defeat to Liverpool.
It appears to be a sense of when rather than if in regards to Ten Hag being sacked by the club, and he faces a very difficult task in getting United back to performing well.