VILLA PARK could be the last-chance saloon for Erik ten Hag on Sunday — just as many felt it once was for Sir Alex Ferguson.
Back on Boxing Day 1989, Manchester United left on the end of a 3-0 hammering and Ferguson’s days as manager looked numbered.
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Except, almost miraculously given the clamour for him to be sacked, Fergie time kicked in and he survived.
Steve Bruce, one of those who walked off to Holte End chants of “Fergie, Fergie on the dole!” believes, no matter today’s result, Ten Hag should be shown the same patience.
Now Blackpool boss, with two years in charge of Aston Villa on his CV, Bruce said: “Alex got time to turn things around and look what happened next.
“The same should go for Ten Hag. Of course fans are desperate for success — but so were they then, too.
“United this summer decided to stick with Erik. They made their decision and should stick to it now because, as we found under Fergie, things can and do turn around. Just give the guy a bit of time.”
Whether the club listen is open to question, with Ten Hag’s side — like United were 25 years ago — wallowing in the bottom half of the table.
Thursday’s Europa League failure to hold on to a two–goal lead, with Harry Maguire grabbing an equaliser in a 3–3 draw in Porto, only underlined how lost Ten Hag’s team are.
It came on the back of a 3–0 thumping at the hands of Spurs and the inability to beat FC Twente and Crystal Palace.
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Indeed, some United fans might say Ten Hag should not even get the chance to have a quick drink before getting the boot should his side succumb to Unai Emery’s Villa.
Yet 35 years ago it was grim indeed for Ferguson as he left the place.
Nine managers Man Utd considered before keeping Erik ten Hag
ERIK TEN HAG appears to be safe as Man Utd manager, but the Dutchman edged dangerously close to the sack.
Here are nine managers Red Devils chiefs are reported to have considered for the job and what allegedly happened with each.
Gareth Southgate
Enjoys plenty of support among Sir Jim Ratcliffe's Ineos chiefs but made clear he wouldn't talk to any clubs until after Euro 2024. There is yet to be any suggestion that contact was made with the England boss.
Kieran McKenna
Talks were opened with McKenna's representatives before the FA Cup final, but the former Man Utd coach opted to sign a new deal with Ipswich after Ten Hag's Wembley win.
Roberto De Zerbi
Allegedly sounded out before the FA Cup final with salary expectations discussed. But Ineos chiefs concluded ex-Brighton boss was not the right fit for the project.
Thomas Frank
Brentford boss met Man Utd representatives the day before the FA Cup final. The Dane also dined with Ratcliffe, Roy Hodgson and Frank Lampard at the launch of a new Ineos car in February.
Marco Silva
Fulham boss reportedly met Man Utd representatives face-to-face two days before the FA Cup final, around the same time as Ten Hag was conducting his press conference.
Mauricio Pochettino
Fell out of Man Utd's thinking in the first week of June, despite being a favourite of Sir Alex Ferguson.
Thomas Tuchel
Made a very strong impression and came across well during a Monaco meeting. Personal terms were discussed before the ex-Chelsea and Bayern Munich boss decided to step back from the process.
Ruben Amorim
Sporting boss was discussed by the Man Utd hierarchy but did not make the final reckoning.
Roberto Martinez
Portugal manager was considered in the early stages.
Two weeks before that debacle there had been a shocking 2–1 home loss to Crystal Palace. And one United fan’s banner read: “Three years of excuses and it’s still c**p. Ta-ra Fergie.”
After that Villa loss, Sir Alex kept his players in the dressing room for a 40-minute hairdryer special.
Bruce, 63, said: “What took place in that dressing room was normal at the time. The defeat came at the end of two very tough years at the club when nothing seemed to be going right.
“The fans were up in arms, the gaffer was under big pressure.
“To say things were difficult would be a real understatement. At the time there seemed no way out.”
“Three years of excuses and it’s still c**p. Ta-ra Fergie."
United fan's banner
Ex-England full-back Viv Anderson, 68, Ferguson’s first signing after he arrived from Aberdeen in November 1986, also played against Villa in ’89.
He said: “The year before, we went to Hartlepool for a pre–season friendly and were 5–0 down at half-time.
“Sir Alex was trying to pull a team together, struggling like Ten Hag is now. So there were plenty of rants, yet THAT one really was a bit special.
“I remember Paul McGrath saying to him as he screamed in his face, ‘It’s OK, I’m just here, you know gaffer’.
“Well, it really kicked off then. The veins were sticking out of his neck as he went for us and, strangely enough, Paul was off to Villa the next season — and played in that 3–0.
“Mind you, we did better in the second half against Hartlepool. We only lost that 1–0!”
Welsh midfielder Clayton Blackmore, 60, another of the Villa Park culprits, said: “I’ve a good idea how hard it is for Ten Hag and the players as there’s no hiding place at Old Trafford.
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“With Sir Alex in his first years it was always a bumpy ride. We were hit and miss, like United are now.
“For instance, before we got battered at Villa Park, we left Anfield with a 0–0 draw that everybody — including the gaffer — was pleased about.
“It’s how you handle the strain as a player, it’s not just about the manager. Sir Alex often went ballistic back then, even after we were winning.
“All we could do was keep trying to believe in ourselves. But those days were hard, just as they are for the current lot.
"It’s how you react that counts in the end — whether you pull yourself and your team-mates together that makes or breaks you.”
Sir Alex was trying to pull a team together, struggling like Ten Hag is now. So there were plenty of rants, yet THAT one really was a bit special.
Viv Anderson
United had looked broken after that Villa Park defeat.
Ian Ormondroyd, 60, one of the stars of that victory, revealed: “Our manager, Graham Taylor, was a good motivator. And he said to us, ‘They’re struggling, they’re a poor team’.
“We felt pumped up, went out with our shoulders back and full of confidence.
“We believed that we could beat anybody — it’s a very similar situation for Villa ahead of this game.”
That Ferguson did survive was still a close-run thing. After Villa, Alan Cork grabbed a last-minute equaliser for Wimbledon at Plough Lane to deny United in a 2–2 draw.
Then another miserable performance allowed QPR to leave Old Trafford with a goalless draw.
Red Devils fans were by now clamouring for the head of Ferguson — and chairman Martin Edwards was preparing to give it to them.
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But 15 days after Fergie’s 40–minute dressing-room rant, Mark Robins scored to give him a 1–0 FA Cup third-round win at Nottingham Forest.
And Bruce added: “The rest, as they say, is history. We went on to win the Cup that season and everything began to change.
“The most important thing about that period was that Sir Alex WAS given time — and the same should apply now.
“It was six years ago last Tuesday that Villa sacked me and that was a tough time, too.
“There was no money in the club. Me and some of the office staff were basically running it on our own.
“Now look at them — and I’m delighted for them. Beating Bayern Munich the other night was fantastic.
“The way Villa are back shows how fortunes can change in this game.
“Things got a whole lot better for Sir Alex and us. They can still get better for Ten Hag, too.”
Former Villa full-back Kevin Gage remembers that Boxing Day win — and his goal — with great pride.
Ian Olney and David Platt also netted that day for the hosts.
And Gage, 60, said: “It does seem amazing Fergie might well have been on the brink after this game and yet went on to win 13 top-flight titles.
“You could never have imagined it after this defeat.”
Taylor’s reputation was tarnished — in many ways unfairly — by his disastrous spell as England manager.
But Taylor, who sadly died in 2017, aged 72, was arguably at the peak of his powers that season before taking the Three Lions job in 1990.
Ormondroyd said: “He got slaughtered because of the TV documentary but he was the best manager I had. Graham was just tactically brilliant.”
Why NOBODY is the right man to replace Erik ten Hag at Man Utd
SunSport's DAVE KIDD says Erik ten Hag's time at Man Utd is up… and explains what's wrong with all the potential candidates to replace him.
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.
Emery may well deliver the coup de grace to Ten Hag on Sunday — especially with Bruno Fernandes suspended and Kobbie Mainoo an injury doubt.
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 be a popular and gettable option but, despite being a fine coach and a very engaging man, he is considered something of a loose cannon.
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.
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