Erik ten Hag has been sacked as manager of Manchester United and the only surprise it seems is how long it took. Ten Hag looked like he was going to be given his marching orders at the end of last season but then United won the FA Cup and the owners had a change of heart. That felt like a fatal decision to let the Dutchman carry on based on one game. United have had one of their worst starts in decades in the Premier League and even though they only recorded two defeats in the past 11 games Ten Hag had to go. At the very crucial moments he did not seem to have an answer although many will feel that the defeat against West Ham is a harsh way to go out. Even West Ham fans admitted that VAR had got it wrong and they never deserved a penalty in the final few minutes which gave them victory but on a larger scale this feels like a deserved sacking. Perhaps one of the earliest signs that Ten Hag didn't have what it takes is how he would keep going back to his former club Ajax to recruit players, it felt short sighted for a manager to do this who is in charge of one of the biggest clubs in the world.
Ten Hag actually leaves United with a 54% win rate which doesn't seem too bad on paper but the club were going sideways and then backwards under him. One has to wonder though if Ten Hag is the only problem at Manchester United? The club seems to have assembled ego after ego who share no desire, passion and honour in wearing the club shirt, in part this seems to be down to the grotesque wages, but it runs deeper than that. In the modern game, and this does not include every elite player, but there does seem to be a tendency to see talented players going through the motions and picking up the wages. In the best leagues you can't do that and will be found out. The game is not at its strongest though- players are supposed to look up to managers, but why would they when managers are being sacked every six months, or looking to move to bigger clubs themselves? There doesn't seem to be much of a foundation in the game at present. Added to this is the fact that players are having to play too many games and so the ones that can keep their ego in check cannot keep their health in the same state. United have many many problems ahead of them and whoever comes in probably will not be able to fix the situation easily, it could take two managers down the line and of course the club will have to pick the right people. For now club legend and number 2 Ruud Van Nistelrooy will take over duties and the Dutchman is 6.00 to get the job permanently. However the odds on favourite is Ruben Amorim and this should raise eyebrows. Amorim who is manager at Portuguese side Sporting is not just known as a very good tactician at only 39 years of age but doesn't mess about when trying to clean the squad out and this is something that is very much needed at Manchester United. He could well be the perfect person to take over at the perfect time.
Next Manchester United manager: Ruben Amorim 1.20, Ruud Van Nistelrooy 6.00, Gareth Southgate 11.00, Xavi 15.00, Thomas Frank 16.00
Of course there is a long time to go in the race for the Premier League title but already there are hints of who could be the title challengers. One of them may not be Arsenal and that should come as a surprise as Mikel Arteta's side have clearly been improving over the past two years and started this season well enough. Arsenal are in 3rd and with 18 points and just one defeat so far of course they can still challenge. The problem is that after defeat against Bournemouth the Gunners then drew 2-2 at home to Liverpool, an obvious better result for the Reds and they were losing that game. It means that Arsenal has fallen 5 points behind champions and league leaders Manchester City but Liverpool are in between them and four points clear. There is pressure from behind too with Aston Villa on the same points and Chelsea just a point behind them. You sense one or two more slip ups and even by November we could be looking at a possible uphill battle for Arteta's side. One of the key reasons is of course the consistency of Manchester City but also the surprise that is Liverpool who have started the season strongly under new manager Arne Slot. Let's take a look at the latest odds to win the Premier League and we can see how Arsenal have drifted out.
To win the Premier League: Manchester City 2.25, Liverpool 3.25, Arsenal 3.75, Chelsea 21.00, Tottenham 67.00
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