The Manchester United hierarchy is reportedly set to convene a meeting next Tuesday in London, just 48 hours after what may be Erik ten Hag’s last game as head coach. This meeting, which will occur at the club’s Kensington offices, has long been scheduled. It follows heightened pressure on ten Hag, whose position is at risk if United suffers its fifth defeat of the season against Aston Villa on Sunday. The meeting will see the attendance of key figures, including executive co-chairman Joel Glazer, who will fly in from the USA.
Last Thursday, Manchester United appeared poised to claim their first victory in four games when they took a two-goal lead against Porto in the Europa League. However, ten Hag’s side lost the advantage, trailing 3-2 with only 10 men on the pitch as extra time loomed. Harry Maguire salvaged a 3-3 draw despite United being down to 10 men following Bruno Fernandes’ red card.
Joel Glazer is expected to be joined by major stakeholders including co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, INEOS head of sport Sir Dave Brailsford, United CEO Omar Berrada, sporting director Dan Ashworth, and technical director Jason Wilcox. Chief financial officer Roger Bell and chief operating officer Collette Roche are also anticipated to attend.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe said, “I like Erik. He’s a very good coach but at the end of the day it’s not my call. It’s the management team that’s running Manchester United that have to decide how we best run the team in many different respects. They weren’t there in January, February, March, or April – Omar, Dan Ashworth – they only arrived in July. They’ve only been there – you can count it in weeks almost – they’ve not been there a long time, so they need to take stock and make some sensible decisions. Our objective is very clear – we want to take Manchester United back to where it should be. It’s not there yet, obviously – that’s very clear.”
