2-1 defeat at West Ham in stoppage time Sunday was the final nail in the coffin for the Dutchman. With the club sitting in 14th place after nine matches, the ownership was now ready to move on.

But the nature of United’s results this season suggests their problems run much deeper than just management.

Ten Hag has been rightly criticized lack of identity on both sides of the ball. The front office allowed him to spend exorbitant amounts of money bringing in players from his previous club, Ajax.

It is also true that until the players take responsibility for poor production on the pitch, United will continue to disappoint regardless of the coach.

Responsibility lies with club captain Bruno Fernandez but his poor form looks contagious. rose to the top of the Premier League Most goalless shots this season With 28 points, he is almost double the next highest player.

Fernandez symbolizes the Red Devils’ disbelief in front of goal. According to Premier League dataThey have the biggest negative difference between expected goals and goals scored this season with -6.56. Only passable sides Crystal Palace and Southampton have scored fewer goals than United’s eight.

Perhaps the most egregious example of player incompetence was Sunday’s match at the London Stadium. United’s goals expected expectation was 2.34, with five great chances created, including one of the clearest goalscoring chances in the Premier League all season.

Leaving with a single goal and leaving it to the referee death minutes This is in the hands of the players, not the manager. But someone had to answer for United’s second-lowest ever points tally (11) after nine games of the Premier League season.

Until ownership addresses the player culture at Manchester United, fans’ frustration will continue. Ten Hag will neither be the first nor the last manager to compete since Sir Alex Ferguson, who led the club to its last league title in 2013.

Ten Hag won two trophies for the club during his tenure, their first since 2017. But due to an impatient fan base and the expectations of the ownership group, mediocre Premier League campaigns are a problem for any United head coach, which is why none of them last long. Three league seasons have passed since Ferguson’s departure.

Unified there are rumors Hiring Sporting CP manager Ruben Amorim, an innovative foreign manager who has enjoyed great success in a top league abroad. It is expected that the project will be fully adopted by the club.

It looks quite familiar.