MANCHESTER UNITED legend Nicky Butt believes Erik ten Hag has until Christmas to prove himself at Old Trafford.
Butt admits United’s start to the season has been a shocker — losing to Brighton and Liverpool to kick off the Prem with two defeats in three.
The ex-midfielder, a six-time Red Devils title winner, feels Ten Hag should get until the end of 2024 to prove he is making progress.
And Butt is convinced he WILL get that time after chief Sir Jim Ratcliffe opted not to axe him in the wake of beating Manchester City in the FA Cup final, then backed him in the summer transfer market.
Butt, 49, said: “It’s not been great. I’m a big Man United fan but I can’t lie to people and say it’s been amazing — because it hasn’t.
“Hopefully it will turn and change. At United you’re always under pressure and Ten Hag knows that.
“Nobody is going to say that they are going to win the title this year — anyone who claims that are jokers — so they will have to bide their time and stick with the manager.
“If they’re not going to do that, then they’d have got rid in the summer.
“There’s no point sacking somebody if there is just nobody to come in. Clubs all over the world do it — and it’s crazy.
“They sack a manager because it’s not going well and they don’t have any reasonable targets coming in.
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“Then, they bring another wrong one in and it’s a knock-on effect.
“They’ve got to give him a few months now. You can’t just start a season, get three of four games in and get rid of the manager.
“If United were going to do this then they should have done that in the close season.
“So you have to now stand by him and get to Christmas — then see where we’re at.
“To me, it’s right down the spine of the team, it’s wide open and people are just coming right through the middle of us.”
Butt’s ex-United team-mate Teddy Sheringham has also slammed Ten Hag’s two-year reign — claiming the Dutchman is “not good enough” and will be gone by Christmas.
But former Ajax chief Ten Hag has tried to add much-needed bite to United’s midfield with the £42.3million signing of Manuel Ugarte from Paris Saint-Germain.
And Butt, part of that iconic 1999 Treble-winning Red Devils side, added: “The new lad Ugarte has come in and can fill a gap.
ERIK TEN HAG appears to be safe as Man Utd manager, but the Dutchman edged dangerously close to the sack.
Here are nine managers Red Devils chiefs are reported to have considered for the job and what allegedly happened with each.
Gareth Southgate
Enjoys plenty of support among Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s Ineos chiefs but made clear he wouldn’t talk to any clubs until after Euro 2024. There is yet to be any suggestion that contact was made with the England boss.
Kieran McKenna
Talks were opened with McKenna’s representatives before the FA Cup final, but the former Man Utd coach opted to sign a new deal with Ipswich after Ten Hag’s Wembley win.
Roberto De Zerbi
Allegedly sounded out before the FA Cup final with salary expectations discussed. But Ineos chiefs concluded ex-Brighton boss was not the right fit for the project.
Thomas Frank
Brentford boss met Man Utd representatives the day before the FA Cup final. The Dane also dined with Ratcliffe, Roy Hodgson and Frank Lampard at the launch of a new Ineos car in February.
Marco Silva
Fulham boss reportedly met Man Utd representatives face-to-face two days before the FA Cup final, around the same time as Ten Hag was conducting his press conference.
Mauricio Pochettino
Fell out of Man Utd’s thinking in the first week of June, despite being a favourite of Sir Alex Ferguson.
Thomas Tuchel
Made a very strong impression and came across well during a Monaco meeting. Personal terms were discussed before the ex-Chelsea and Bayern Munich boss decided to step back from the process.
Ruben Amorim
Sporting boss was discussed by the Man Utd hierarchy but did not make the final reckoning.
Roberto Martinez
Portugal manager was considered in the early stages.
“We have some very talented players, so hopefully the manager can get them playing the way he wants and get some results.
“You have to get the players and new signings into the spirit of what Man United is all about.
“That’s a big thing. Years ago you were able to watch United and know what you were going to get.
“You see it at City and Liverpool but with United, you still struggle to see what style of football it is.”
It must have stung Butt and his fellow Class of 92 graduates to watch Pep Guardiola’s City rack up a record four consecutive titles.
The ex-England star added: “City are way ahead. What we need to do is get a squad together who can challenge next season.
“This season, it’s about getting back into Champions League football and having a run in the cups. If people think it is about winning the league title this year, they are dreaming.
“The international break came at a good time as the boss can get players back fit, hopefully, and go again.”
MANCHESTER UNITED had a horror show against Liverpool as they lost 3-0.
Casemiro was so bad he was taken off at half-time.
But were there any positive performances at Old Trafford?
Andre Onana – 5
Nothing he could do about any of Liverpool’s goals and made a few saves to prevent the scoreline from getting worse.
Noussair Mazraoui – 5
Came close to scoring in the first half and looked solid enough against Diaz although he did push up too high before Liverpool’s opener.
Matthijs de Ligt – 4
Left Diaz and Domink Szobozslai in acres of space for the opening goal but was left in a tricky spot thanks to Casemiro’s error.
Booked for a shocking late tackle on Diaz.
Lisandro Martinez – 3
Lost Diaz for the second goal which meant the Colombian was able to score unmarked from the penalty spot.
Also guilty of giving away the ball too easily and was not tight enough with his marking.
Diogo Dalot – 4
Was caught out pushing up too quickly for the first goal and did not do enough to stop Mo Salah’s cross in the build-up to Liverpool’s second.
Looked dangerous in attack at times but too infrequently as he had plenty of defensive work to do since Rashford did not track Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Casemiro – 2
A horror show in the first half as he gave the ball away in the lead up to both of Liverpool’s goals.
He was caught on the ball for the second after a shocking misplaced pass left his defence vulnerable for the opening goal. Hooked at half-time.
Kobbie Mainoo – 4
Fell victim to the Casemiro curse as he was shrugged off the ball in a terrible position, allowing Liverpool to add a third with ease.
Bruno Fernandes – 5
Was United’s most creative spark but that is not saying much. Tried to get his side going in the first half but looked short of ideas and inspiration after the break.
Alejandro Garnacho – 4
Still appears to be a little rusty and is yet to hit the heights he reached last season.
Marcus Rashford – 3
Nothing came off for the out-of-sorts forward who must be running out of chances before he is dropped.
Joshua Zirkzee – 4
Quiet up-front and had little influence on the wing as well, but missed a clear-cut chance with his head and should have turned in Rashford’s cross which he met at the far post.
Subs
Toby Collyer (for Casemiro, HT) – 5
A difficult game for the youngster to make his Premier League debut but he put himself about and won a few tackles.
Harry Maguire (for De Ligt, 69mins) – 5
Shored things up at the back as Liverpool took their foot off the pedal.
Amad (for Garnacho, 69mins) – 5
Provided a spark on the right and looked more lively than Garnacho.
Christian Eriksen (for Zirkzee, 86mins) – N/A
Not on long enough to make an impact.
