Soccer-Reaction to Manchester United sacking manager Ten Hag

(Reuters) -Manchester United have sacked manager Erik ten Hag, with the team languishing 14th in the Premier League table after nine games, the club said in a statement on Monday.

United have appointed their assistant manager and former striker Ruud van Nistelrooy to take over on an interim basis.

Following are quotes and reactions to the announcement.

MANCHESTER UNITED CAPTAIN BRUNO FERNANDES

“Thanks for everything boss! I appreciate the trust and the moments we shared together, I wish you all the best in the future.

“Even knowing the last period hasn’t been great from all of us I hope you fans can keep with you the good things the manager has done for our club!”

UNITED WINGER ALEJANDRO GARNACHO

“Thank you for everything, boss. I will always be grateful to you for giving me the opportunity and the confidence to play for this club.

“It hasn’t gone as well as we wanted, but I will remember the good times we had together and I wish you all the best in the future. Thank you very much Erik”

UNITED MIDFIELDER KOBBIE MAINOO

“Thank you for your trust and belief in me, and for giving me the opportunity to play with my boyhood club. I wish you all the best for the future.”

FORMER UNITED PLAYER AND SKY SPORTS PUNDIT GARY NEVILLE

“The lack of identity and style is something that has been a mystery for the last two-and-a-half seasons. The recruitment has been awful at times but I believe there are a group of players who can play better than they are.

“Lack of style has been the biggest problem. It is a real struggle watching them play and it hasn’t changed in the last 18 months. That has been as bad as the results.

“No-one watches United and doesn’t think the players are better than what they are showing. I thought it was coming.

“Looking at that Tottenham (Hotspur) game a few weeks ago I felt I had seen this before. It was a bad day for Manchester United and a bad day for Erik ten Hag.

“Overall, the challenges of the results and performances have meant that the owners have decided to sack him. I don’t think anybody will be truly shocked.”

FORMER UNITED PLAYER AND TV PUNDIT RIO FERDINAND

“Am I surprised? No. They kept the man in charge, season kicks in, I actually thought we were starting to see some new signs in the first two or three games, and then we get beat by Liverpool and never recovered.

“It was like a boxer getting hit and knocked down in the third round and never recovering and getting knocked out, knocked down, every single round on the way to the 12th round.

“And finally, we’re here. The fight’s been called off in the last round for the manager, and I think now we’re going to go for a new direction.

Someone’s got to come in and change that now, change the whole dynamic of this squad, and it’s going to be difficult because these guys are in a rut.

“… This is down to Ruud right now. He’s the interim manager, he’s got to change that culture.

FORMER LIVERPOOL PLAYER AND TV PUNDIT JAMIE CARRAGHER

“I wouldn’t say I’m sympathetic for Ten Hag, he was given an opportunity to fix what went wrong last season when he shouldn’t have been.

“… For Ten Hag it’s been going wrong for the last 18 months. I don’t think INEOS have made a good start (as co-owners of United). The summer was a mess for them, it cost them 150 to 200 million pounds ($195-$260 million) that they didn’t need to waste.

“… I’m not sure what Man United can do right now, I don’t think the fans would buy (former England manager) Gareth Southgate, but I don’t think (ex-Barcelona boss) Xavi would be a bad appointment.

He’s got huge status as a player, that doesn’t make you a great manager but it does give you instant respect on the training pitch… He’s not got a bad CV.”

BRENTFORD MANAGER THOMAS FRANK

“Of course, I feel for Erik. He is a great coach and has a great career. He did a good job at Man United, two trophies in two years (League Cup and FA Cup).

It’s a non-stop developing world and that is more than acceptable. At these big clubs, there are massive expectations but there has to be a reality check… You feel for guys who lose their jobs and I’m sure Erik gave everything.

“There are better people to judge that (improvement). He had a very good first season and had more than a few injury problems.”

FORMER ENGLAND PLAYER AND FOOTBALL PUNDIT ALAN SHEARER

“We were just waiting for it to happen. Even the way he was talking that ‘we’re all on the same page’. Well, they weren’t really on the same page because everyone knew they were talking to (other) managers in the summer.

“If they’re on the same page why on earth are they speaking to managers in the summer? As soon as that came out we all said he was a dead man walking, unfortunately.”

FORMER UNITED PLAYER AND IRISH FOOTBALL PUNDIT ROY KEANE

In good teams, coaches hold players accountable. In great teams, players hold players accountable.”

FORMER UNITED FORWARD LOUIS SAHA

We have seen over the weeks, the difficulties in finding any kind of plan, identity, people, connection and it wasn’t working.

“The talent of players saved the situation in some games, but at the end of it, I think it’s totally normal to see this situation.

I don’t like to see any manager being sacked, that’s not something I promote, but this club needs something new, that’s obvious, and if Ruud is managing to do this in a very quick manner I think he can even keep this position, I hope for him.

FORMER UNITED PLAYER HENNING BERG

It’s never a good situation to change the coach or manager during the season. If they had done it in the summer, the new manager would have had time to implement his style, like Liverpool have done.

“They had time to change, to work, for the players to be ready for the season to start. This is much more difficult.

“… The best managers are taken. Tuchel just took the England job. Who’s going to come in and you can say is a ‘proven winner’ and who has the experience to guide United from where they are now into the top – it’s one of the most difficult jobs.”

($1 = 0.7705 pounds)

(Reporting by Suramya Kaushik in Bengaluru)