Manchester United pondered dismissing Erik ten Hag this summer before choosing to give him a one-year contract extension.

Ten Hag is currently under contract at Old Trafford until June 2026, but that doesn’t guarantee his job is secure.

United has had an unimpressive start to the new season, winning only one of their first four games.

Ten Hag’s team were hammered 3-0 at home by rivals Liverpool in their penultimate game before the international break. 

Ten Hag is presently the bookmakers’ joint favourite, alongside Everton’s Sean Dyche, to become the first Premier League manager to be fired this season.

Erik ten Hag’s position as Manchester United manager is thought to be under threat.

Meanwhile, The Guardian claimed last week that Ten Hag is under threat of being fired unless he alters his style of play.

Key members of United’s Ineos-led football department, including Sir Jim Ratcliffe, Dan Ashworth, and Jason Wilcox, are claimed to be disappointed by Ten Hag’s team’s inability to dominate games.

However, Ratcliffe and Co appear to recognise that Ten Hag has been badly limited by injury issues this season and that he should be allowed time to integrate his five senior summer arrivals.

United have invested almost £200 million on new players after finishing seventh in the Premier League last season, including Joshua Zirkzee, Leny Yoro, Matthijs de Ligt, Noussair Mazraoui, and Manuel Ugarte. 

Sir Jim Ratcliffe (left, with his palm on his forehead) and Dan Ashworth (second right) were seen at Old Trafford during United’s 3-0 home defeat to Liverpool on Sunday.

Ugarte has yet to make his United debut, and Yoro suffered a serious injury during a preseason trip to the United States.

Rasmus Hojlund, Ten Hag’s first-choice central striker, has also yet to play this season after sustaining an injury in America.