Treble winner Nicky Butt says Manchester United should not sack Erik ten Hag as public pressure grows on the club and the manager.
Co-owners Ineos reportedly came close to pulling the plug in the summer after a disastrous season left the Red Devils at a record-low eighth place in the table.
However, an unexpected FA Cup final triumph over Manchester City was enough to save the Dutchman’s job and he signed a contract extending his stay at United to another two years.
But this season has started badly, with an unconvincing home win against Fulham followed by back-to-back defeats against Brighton and Liverpool leading to fans, pundits and journalists speculating as to whether the end is nigh for Ten Hag.
In an interview with The MEN, former head of first team development Butt, however, has called for calm.
“There’s no point sacking somebody if there’s nobody to come in. Clubs all over the world do it, I think it’s crazy,” he said.
“They sack a manager because it’s not going well and they don’t have any reasonable targets coming in, then they bring another wrong one in and it’s a knock-on effect.
“For me, I’d give him time to get it right. It’s just the start of the season, we’ve only played three or four games and you’ve got to stand by him. If they don’t do that, they just should have let go of him in the post-season.”
Butt also urged fans to be patient in regard to Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s overhaul of the club.
“It’ll take time, you can’t really judge him [Ratcliffe] right now,” Butt said.
“One thing is for certain, the team has got to improve. I think everyone would say that openly.
“They’re a long way off winning the title but what Ratcliffe has done is put experts in the right positions and hopefully you’ll see the fruition of that in the next few years.”
The international break has come at a good time for United. It will give Ten Hag and his men time to regroup and also get the likes of Rasmus Hojlund, Leny Yoro, Mason Mount, Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia all closer to fitness to help bolster the ranks.
Two matches for new signing Manuel Ugarte wearing the colours of Uruguay and game time for new Dutch signings Matthijs de Ligt and Joshua Zirkzee should also help them get up to speed.
United’s next game is away to newly-promoted Southampton on Saturday lunchtime. A convincing win will at least buy Ten Hag more time and help to prove Butt correct in his call for patience.
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