Beating Liverpool can save Ten Hag but defeat may spell end
United boss is under pressure but he should be relishing golden opportunity of an FA Cup clash with Klopp’s Reds
Erik ten Hag faces Jurgen Klopp twiceoverthenextthreeweeks. Gatecrashing the Liverpool manager’s farewell party will go a long way to ensuring there is no managerial change at Manchester United in the near future.
There is no sugar-coating the importance of tomorrow’s FA Cup quarter-final for the Dutch coach.
The first of the Old Trafford meetings with Klopp between now and April 7 will have a massive bearing on how much faith there is left in Ten Hag to revive the club. Win, and Ten Hag will − to steal Klopp’s famous phrase − turn some of his doubters into believers.
Lose, and the international break will feel like an eternity, the 13 days until United’s
next match away at Brentford being filled with speculation, all of it negative.
We often see the November international break as a graveyard for managers, as chairmen and owners consider if a change is necessary to shift the direction of a campaign.
The upcoming one feels more significant in determining the way ahead at Old Trafford. “Beware the Ides of March,” and all that.
That generally applies everywhere. Whether it is coaches and players pondering their next move to a bigger or better club, or boardrooms checking the availability of preferred targets, you can be sure the groundwork and key decisions leading to summer announcements are happening as we speak.
The executives at Anfield and Old Trafford will be holding the most critical talks about who their manager will be at the start of next season. Obviously, the circumstances are not the same.
AsthenewfootballsupremoforFenway Sports Group, Michael Edwards knows he will be accelerating the search to replace Klopp to ensure a smooth transition.
It will be clearer by tomorrow night if Jim Ratcliffe is green-lighting or pausing the hunt for an alternative to Ten
Hag to spearhead another rebuilding process. Given his situation – I have already written in this column the United manager is effectively ‘on trial’ – there are many who will argue the FA Cup quarter-final draw is a nightmare for Ten Hag. It could go the other way. Rather than seeing peril when facing Liverpool, he should be relishing a golden opportunity.
A positive result can help shift the perception of him. If he goes on to win the FA Cup, perspectives of this season will radically change, especially given the calibre of opponents still in the competition.
Upon taking control of United, Ratcliffe said he wanted to topple Manchester City. Make no mistake, Liverpool and United will always judge themselves against the other. Fixtures
‘The international break is significant in determining the way ahead at Old Trafford’