MANCHESTER UNITED supremos have finally sacked Erik ten Hag but even then theyve been left with egg on their faces.

The Dutchman, 54, has long been under-fire after an unimpressive tenure at Old Trafford.

AlamyMan Utd chiefs Erik ten Hag blunder in the summer has cost them an additional £7m[/caption]PASir Jim Ratcliffe is embarking on major cost-cutting measures at Old Trafford, including relieving Sir Alex Ferguson of his ambassadorial role, but still gave Ten Hag a new deal[/caption]

Ten Hag was expected to be sacked in the summer after leading United to a record-worst EIGHTH in the Premier League.

He survived by the skin of his teeth in part thanks to winning the FA Cup, but perhaps more due to the lack of options on the manager market.

But rather than just keep Ten Hag whose original contract was due to expire next summer bungling United chiefs offered Ten Hag improved terms, including an additional year on the contract.

Its believed it will cost Man Utd a staggering £15MILLION to sack him.

And that number would have been roughly half that had they not offered him a fresh contract in the summer.

So what exactly did Man Utd get for that extra £7million or so?

Well, how about 14th place in the Premier League with just three wins from nine games averaging 1.2 points per game?

How about ZERO wins from three Europa League games?

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What about averaging under one goal per game in the top flight for a goal difference of -3?

In fact, in all competitions, United have only beaten Fulham, Brentford, Southampton and Barnsley.

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THIS is a mid-table squad at an underachieving club, with a lot of unwanted players on big money.

And Ratcliffe is an instinctive cost-cutter who may not pay top dollar to the next manager.

If this club wasn’t called ‘Manchester United’, it wouldn’t be an especially desirable job.

The good news for United is that their new sporting director, Dan Ashworth, is a very decent judge of a manager.

He has been instrumental in three previous managerial appointments — Gareth Southgate for England, Graham Potter for Brighton and Eddie Howe for Newcastle.

None were wildly popular at the time, all were conspicuous successes.

Interestingly, Ashworth’s No 1 choice for the Newcastle job was Unai Emery, who turned him down to stay at Villarreal but has since proved that judgment right by excelling at Aston Villa.

And the Spaniard would be an excellent fit for United — yet there is next to no chance that he would abandon Villa’s Champions League campaign to take the Old Trafford job, not least because he isn’t a stark raving madman.

Howe would be another good candidate to succeed Ten Hag but, although he has become frustrated on Tyneside, the Saudis would surely not allow Ratcliffe to poach Howe, as they reluctantly did with Ashworth.

Potter is available but his Chelsea experience and lack of charisma would make him a tough sell.

Which brings us to Southgate, who remains close with Ashworth and is an excellent man-manager who was seriously considered by United last spring.

Yet, despite having led England to two of their three major finals, Southgate’s reputation for over-caution was only enhanced during the Euros.

Mauricio Pochettino, passed over twice by United, is out of the equation having taken the United States job.

Thomas Tuchel would also have been a popular and gettable option but England got in there first.

Likewise, Roberto De Zerbi, now at Marseille after his brief Brighton stint sparkled then fizzled out.

Kieran McKenna — a gifted former United coach who has won back-to-back promotions with Ipswich Town — is an intriguing candidate but the imminent vacancy may come a year or so too soon.

Marco Silva, the extremely under-rated Fulham boss, has been on United’s radar and should not be discounted.

Sporting Lisbon’s Ruben Amorim, last season’s ‘next big thing’, was passed over by West Ham as well as Liverpool this summer and is not an easy man to pin down.

Zinedine Zidane, who has taken over from Alan Curbishley as a 20-1 shot for every Premier League job, is a ‘figurehead’ manager and not an Ashworth type.

Ruud van Nistelrooy, the former United goal machine who joined Ten Hag’s coaching team in the summer is the bookies’ favourite. Simply because he’s in the building and he’s Dutch.

So, yes, getting rid of Ten Hag is the easy part.

Theyve got nowhere near the big boys either, getting thrashed 3-0 by both fierce rivals Liverpool AND Tottenham.

Perhaps Uniteds new look boardroom were fearful Ten Hag WOULD show signs of promise this season and then jump ship when a better offer came in next summer.

Otherwise, why on earth would you extend his contract?

With the benefit of hindsight, its a massive blunder especially with United chiefs desperately slashing the budget, including axing club legend Sir Alex Ferguson from his multi-million-pound ambassadorial role.

Of course, Ten Hag and the board arent the only ones to blame the players have been largely dreadful, too.

And for now its up to striker icon Ruud van Nistelrooy brought into the club setup in the summer to help Ten Hag to try to get the best out of this struggling squad, on an interim basis.

He may, too, be given the full time job if he impresses.

With the bar set so low, its hard to believe he wont improve the club at least in some small way.

However, its most likely United chiefs look for a more seasoned campaigner with Xavi, Ruben Amorim, Graham Potter, Gareth Southgate, Kieran McKenna and Edin Terzic all in the running.

The likes of Thomas Frank and Michael Carrick will all be keeping an eye on the situation at Old Trafford with great interest.

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Ruud van Nistelrooy

The Red Devils legend, 48, is no stranger to the pressures of Old Trafford.

Van Nistelrooy scored 150 goals in 219 games for Man Utd and helped them to the 2002-03 Premier League title.

The striker also starred for another monster club, Real Madrid, as a player before going into coaching.

The 70-cap ex-Holland international managed PSVs youth team before landing the senior job for the 2022-23 season.

Van Nistelrooy landed a coaching job under Ten Hag earlier this year and is said to have done a superb job working with the clubs strikers behind the scenes.

And now he will have the chance to show what he can do in a live interview of sorts.

How long the club will give him is another matter.

Gareth Southgate

The former England boss, 54, has long been linked with the Man Utd job.

The former Crystal Palace, Aston Villa and Middlesbrough defender has gone on to enjoy great success as a manager albeit without getting his hands on a major trophy.

Southgate managed Middlesbrough between 2006 and 2009 before taking on the England Under-21s job between 2013 and 2016.

The 57-cap former Three Lions international then took the senior national job, replacing Roy Hodgson.

Southgate brought the nation together as he led England to the 2018 World Cup semi-finals, as well as the final of Euro 2020 and Euro 2024.

However, he left his role in the summer following the defeat to Spain and was replaced by Lee Carsley on an interim basis.

Thomas Tuchel another boss long linked with the Old Trafford job will take over the reins in 2025.

Southgate has been out of club management for 15 years and a portion of England fans were frustrated by what they deemed a defensive style.

However, his ability to largely galvanise the fan-base and deal with the pressure of one of the biggest jobs in sport with real class would be a huge asset for United.

Edin Terzic

Earlier this month, SunSport revealed Edin Terzic is the shock name on Uniteds list to replace Ten Hag.

German Terzic took Borussia Dortmund to the Champions League final last season before surprisingly quitting.

He has many admirers at Old Trafford and it would he a smart but unexpected move to go for him if they sack under-fire Ten Hag.

Terzic, 41, did his coaching badges in England, where he was friends with fellow United target Graham Potter, and then worked as Slaven Bilic’s No 2 at West Ham.

He rose to the top in Germany during two spells at Dortmund before he walked away in June.

Graham Potter

The English boss, 49, has been out of work since being axed by Chelsea in April 2023.

Potter excited fans with his attacking approach at Brighton before he was poached by the Blues.

However, he failed to lift Chelsea out of their funk and was given his marching orders.

Potters fans include Manchester City mastermind Pep Guardiola.

And theres no doubt the ex-OstersundS FK and Swansea boss would get United playing on the front foot, something Old Trafford fans have long craved.

Kieran McKenna

Cruelly denied a playing career due to injury, the former Tottenham youth prospect has excelled as a coach.

McKenna, 38, worked as Under-18s coach at both Spurs and Man Utd before landing the top job at Ipswich Town.

The young boss incredibly guided the Tractor Boys to back-to-back promotions, guiding them from League One back to the Premier League, ending the clubs 22-year absence.

McKenna was quickly added to a host of clubs wish-lists, including Man Utd, according to reports.

But Ipswich reacted swiftly to offer him a new, long-term contract.

However, his side are yet to win any of their opening nine Premier League games, with four wins and five defeats.

McKenna has Ipswich playing exciting, expansive football something Man Utd fans crave.

The big question now is whether McKenna opts to jump ship or stay loyal.

Ruben Amorim, Xavi and Thomas Frank are also three names very much believed to be in the running.