Sir Jim Ratcliffe was pressed on his verdict of Erik ten Hag during his first interview as Manchester United’s part-owner.
The Dutch boss took the reins officially at the beginning of the 2022/2023 campaign, bolstering his squad the way he saw fit and implementing his play style from the get-go.
He led the Reds to a third-placed Premier League finish, the FA Cup final and Europa League quarter-finals, while also ending a six-year trophy drought by defeating Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup final last February.
This season, however, has been nothing short of tumultuous, with United already out of the Champions League by Christmas – after finishing rock-bottom of their group – out of the League Cup and playing catch-up in the top four race. They have made some significant headway in recent weeks though and remain in the FA Cup.
Ratcliffe, now putting the wheels in motion for the substantial changes he plans to implement, was of course going to be quizzed on his opinion of Ten Hag.
Ratcliffe has his say
He told BBC Sport: “The squad has played really good football over the last couple of months but it’s not at the level we want to get to.”
“I don’t think it’s appropriate for me to talk about individuals in that organisation,” he said of the manager. “What I would say in respect of the coach is that if you look at this last 11 years, Manchester United has had quite a few coaches. Some of those coaches are very capable and they’ve been very successful [in the past], but nobody has been successful in that Manchester United environment for the last 11 years. So that would say to me that there is something wrong with the environment.
“It’s not constructive for me to blame anyone, it’s just a fact of life, it hasn’t been. My focus is obviously on the future – how do I change that environment so you get the very best? So we can get the very best out of the coach and the coach can get the very best out of the squad.”
What does the future hold for current Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag? @danroan has spoken exclusively to new #ManUtd co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe on the @BBCSport app #BBCFootball #PL pic.twitter.com/3njmkUJXZu
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) February 21, 2024
Footage courtesy of BBC Sport.
