Manchester United headed into the 2024/25 season with newfound optimism following Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s takeover, but there was still an Erik ten Hag-shaped elephant in the room.
The FA Cup win was not enough to salvage what was otherwise a disastrous season, but INEOS saw enough from this morale-boosting victory at Wembley to stick with the Dutchman in a decision which was presumably hastened by their failure to land several top targets.
Ratcliffe and Co. did not exactly give Ten Hag a glowing endorsement with the token gesture of a one-year contract extension and it was evident that the under-fire Dutchman headed into this season on the thinnest of ice.
Ten Hag’s ability to extract a single great performance from his side once in a blue moon served him well in cup competitions and certain all-Big Six clashes, but more often, Man Utd were too easy to cut through and were found wanting in the Premier League.
The Red Devils have hit a new low this season, winning just three of their opening nine Premier League games as Ten Hag’s prolonged stay of execution ended after last month’s disappointing 2-1 loss at West Ham.
Before Ratcliffe’s arrival, Old Trafford – as Gary Neville insists on bringing up at any given opportunity – had become a graveyard for players post-Sir Alex Ferguson.
This is also the case with the managers. The bosses who came before Ten Hag failed to recover after leaving Man Utd as they were never again seen at a top-tier club.
Ten Hag will obviously intend to buck this trend and should be able to land a decent job – albeit while taking a step down – when he returns to management as he can hang his hat on his cup success at United. But where could he go? Here are six possible next moves for the Dutchman…
Ajax
Ten Hag has returned to home comforts after leaving Man Utd and was recently spotted in the stands as Ajax faced Eredivisie rivals FC Twente.
The 54-year-old left the Dutch giants on pretty good terms and Man Utd’s recent woes have paled in comparison to what Ajax have been through over the past two-and-a-half years as Jordan Henderson has had a torrid time.
From winning the Eredivisie title in back-to-back seasons before Ten Hag’s exit, Ajax finished third and fifth in their next two seasons and have had six (yes, SIX) managers.
New boss Francesco Farioli has fared better than his predecessors and third-placed Ajax will be just four points adrift of league leaders PSV Eindhoven if they win their game in hand. But Ten Hag was heavily linked with his former club earlier this year and they’d likely take him back in a heartbeat if everything goes Pete Tong again.
READ: Five PL moves for Ruud van Nistelrooy post-Man Utd include replacing Ange Postecoglou at Spurs
Netherlands
Ten Hag will also inevitably be linked with a move into international football if current boss Ronald Koeman loses his job.
Like England, the Netherlands largely flattered to deceive at Euro 2024 en route to succumbing to that Ollie Watkins goal in the semi-finals. Their Nations League campaign has been far less successful as Koeman’s side have just one win in four games.
As much as England’s 2-1 win over Greece was a positive advert for the Nations League, games in this competition are still glorified friendlies and a poor campaign in this tournament is unlikely to be enough on its own for a manager to get sacked.
But Koeman – who had his critics after he ditched his country to join Barcelona in 2020 before returning over two years later – was under scrutiny in the summer and Ten Hag would certainly be an upgrade.
AS Roma
Another of Europe’s crisis clubs, Serie A giants Roma were reportedly interested in Ten Hag and former Chelsea boss Graham Potter – who is the favourite to join Spurs – following Ivan Juric’s brief but sh*t spell in charge.
Not-so-Special One Jose Mourinho has set Roma on a downward trajectory, with the 12th-placed side currently closer to relegation than the European places.
In a desperate attempt to get fans back on side, Roma’s owners – the Everton-linked Friedkin Group – have tempted 73-year-old Claudio Ranieri out of retirement and he’s penned a contract until the summer.
The beloved manager’s third spell as Roma’s boss will surely be brief and the floundering side will probably return to the drawing board in the summer even if the veteran can halt their freefall. At that point, their interest in Ten Hag could step up.
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Borussia Dortmund
It was difficult to keep track of a particularly frantic managerial merry-go-around in the summer as several European giants were in the market for a new boss.
Dortmund were in the thick of the action following the surprising exit of Man Utd-linked Edin Terzic, who departed after guiding his side to last season’s Champions League final.
The Bundesliga side’s decision on his replacement was just as surprising as Terzic’s exit as the appointment of former Liverpool midfielder Nuri Sahin made us all feel old.
While Dortmund have sparkled in the Champions League (especially against Celtic), the same cannot be said for their Bundesliga exploits as they are seventh after ten matches. They may soon turn to Ten Hag to offer the former Man Utd boss a speedy return to management as a ‘bombshell’ move has been discussed.
Newcastle United
Ten Hag also has a couple of options in the Premier League for his next move and we start with Newcastle United.
The summer was pretty bleak for the Magpies, who had their hands tied behind their back amid their issues with Profit and Sustainability.
There have also been teething issues following their board overhaul as it’s been widely reported that new director of football Paul Mitchell has butted heads with Eddie Howe. Coinciding with the England job becoming available, it seemed like the manager was on borrowed time at St James’ Park.
But talk over an exit for Howe subsided before this international break as Newcastle finally hit their groove and won three straight matches across all competitions.
Still ,recent reports claiming Mourinho is ‘targeting the Newcastle job’ re-established the consensus that Howe is a transitionary boss who successfully kickstarted PIF’s reign at St James’ Park with a bang before being replaced by an ‘elite’ replacement.
As he likes to tell us, Ten Hag is a serial winner of cup competitions and he’d fancy himself to deliver some long-overdue silverware to St James’ Park.
READ: Man Utd top injury table with 57 Premier League games missed
Tottenham Hotspur
The upcoming festive period could be defining for Ange Postecoglou as his side’s infuriating inconsistency held them back before the international break.
He was initially a breath of fresh air following Mourinho and Antonio Conte’s dull spells in the dugout. Spurs are still way more fun than they once were, but results are also key and their 10th position needs to be improved sharpish if Postecoglou is to remain in charge for the long haul.
Daniel Levy is rightly more of a villain at Spurs than Postecoglou, but the Aussie – who is the latest head coach to be dragged down by the chairman – will be the first out of the door if the club’s failings worsen in the coming months.
Interestingly, Ten Hag came close to joining Spurs before he took over at Man Utd, but club reservations prevented a deal from going through.
With Levy quickly running out of options, the Dutchman could be re-assessed by the Tottenham hierarchy if Postecoglou is axed. If his spell at Man Utd is anything to go by, Spurs would be woeful in the Premier League but could win a trophy. So he’d perhaps be worth a punt…
