Manchester United fans have drawn comparisons between Erik ten Hag’s recent record and Gary Neville’s disastrous spell at Valencia following his team’s dismal 3-0 defeat to Tottenham.
United fell to a new level on Sunday night when they were outplayed by Spurs, losing a goal in three minutes and never looking in the game.
Sunday’s result left the Red Devils with just seven points from their first six games in the Premier League this season in what has been a continuation of the poor form that saw them finish eighth last season.
In his last 28 games under Ten Hag, United have lost 13, scored 35 goals and conceded 45 in the process.
That record compares similarly to former club defender Gary Neville’s brief spell in charge of Valencia in 2016.
Fans have made comparisons between Erik ten Hag’s record and Gary Neville’s season in Valencia.
The Red Devils suffered a dismal 3-0 defeat to Tottenham at Old Trafford on Sunday.
Neville lasted less than four months in charge of the La Liga side after accepting an offer to coach owner and close friend Peter Lim’s side, with the Sky Sports pundit winning just three of his 16 league games in charge.
His disastrous management saw his team defeated 7-0 by Barcelona and he lost 11 of his 28 games, with Valencia. Scoring 39 and conceding 38 in that time.
United were vastly inferior to Tottenham, who should have been more than 1-0 ahead when Bruno Fernandes received a questionable red card for a foul on James Maddison in the 42nd minute.
Having been dominant against United’s 11 men, Spurs continued to lead the game against 10 when Dejan Kulusevski and Dominic Solanke joined Brennan Johnson on the scoreboard at Old Trafford.
Ten Hag was asked about his future after the defeat at Old Trafford and replied: “No, I’m not thinking about this.
“We all made the decision together to stay together, as an ownership, as a leadership group in the summer, and we also made the decision from a clear review of what we need to improve and how we want to build a team.”
“But we knew it would take some time, because of how the window went, some players arrived late like Ugarte. Also, we have to improve something in the organization, some injuries, we need some time.
“We are all together on the same page or in the same boat: the owners, the staff and the players too.” I don’t have that worry.’
Ten Hag insisted he is not afraid of losing his job amid mounting pressure following the latest defeat.
Ten Hag almost lost his job at the end of last season after overseeing United’s lowest finish in Premier League history (eighth), although they went on to win the FA Cup.
United’s owners, led by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, searched for possible replacements before finally deciding in July to keep Ten Hag, whose contract was extended until June 2026.
Ten Hag was also backed by the transfer market this summer, with United bringing in Joshua Zirkzee, Leny Yoro, Matthijs de Ligt, Noussair Mazraoui and Manuel Ugarte.
