How Much Will It Cost Manchester United To Sack Erik Ten Hag After League Cup Exit

Manchester United are reportedly facing a record-equalling severance fee if they choose to sack head coach Erik ten Hag amid their nightmare season, which seems to be getting worse match after match.

Ten Hag won the League Cup in the 2022-23 season, his maiden campaign with Manchester United, while the club also finished third in the Premier League, securing a UEFA Champions League spot.

In contrast, the Red Devils on Wednesday were eliminated from the League Cup, following their 3-0 loss to Newcastle United in their fourth-round meeting.

Manchester United signed Ten Hag in a £9million-a-year contract that is valid until the summer of 2025. But his future at the Theatre of Dreams looks very uncertain, especially with the Old Trafford side having an awful season. They have lost eight of their last 15 matches in all competitions. Manchester United have lost five of their opening 10 league games for the first time ever, which is undoubtedly a negative mark on Ten Hag as manager of the iconic club.

Since Sir Alex Ferguson's departure from Old Trafford in 2013, Manchester United have spent a staggering £38million on sacking managers.

If the club does decide to get rid of Ten Hag in the ongoing season, the Glazers would need to pay up the Dutch boss' guaranteed salary, which is set to be around £15 million.

This amount is a record sum for the club as previous managers who were sacked by Manchester United such as David Moyes (£7 million), Louis van Gaal (£8.4 million) and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer (£7.5 million) were paid far less. Only Jose Mourinho (£15 million) has matched Ten Hag's potential payout.

Ten Hag's fate at Manchester United has become even more uncertain after he slammed his players for their poor performance in their 3-0 loss to Manchester City in the Premier League last week.

The Manchester United boss, making his situation worse with the players, claimed that Bruno Fernandes and Co. would never reach the level of his successful Ajax side. Ten Hag also accused some of Manchester United's attackers of ignoring his "game plan" that led to City's second goal.

The 53-year-old manager spent a successful four and half seasons between 2017 and 2022 at Ajax, winning three league titles. "We will never play that football. Because those were different players. This is also not why I came here," Ten Hag said after Man Utd's loss to City.

In reply, Manchester United players did not hesitate to express their feelings as they were left shocked by some of Ten Hag's tactics against Man City, according to reports in English media. The players specifically questioned the boss about the positions played by defender Victor Lindelof and midfielder Bruno Fernandes and why striker Antony was brought in so late.

Manchester United are eighth in the 2023-24 Premier League table, with 15 points from 10 games. Their next fixture is a league outing on Saturday against Fulham at Craven Cottage.