Explained: Manchester United's downfall under Erik ten Hag after Bournemouth defeat and what it means

Manchester United slipped to a new low following a 3-0 defeat to AFC Bournemouth in their Premier League game at Old Trafford on Saturday. Questions have been raised over Erik ten Hag’s future as United manager following the defeat, which leaves the Reds in sixth place with 27 points, six points behind the fourth place. It’s not just in the Premier League United are lagging behind. United are languishing in fourth place in their UEFA Champions League group, with just four points from five games leaving their knockout stage hopes hanging in the balance. So, what has gone wrong for Manchester United this season? It’s not shocking that Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag is under serious pressure after United’s torrid start to the season, more specifically, the manner in which the Reds suffered a 0-3 defeat to Bournemouth. Ten Hag, however, is not the only one to blame here. There’s been an ongoing disparity between United’s fans and their owners, the Glazers family, ever since the club was put for sale in 2022. At that time, the two frontrunners to buy the club were Sheikh Jassim of Qatar and Jim Ratcliffe of the INEOS Group. But, with either of the bidders failing to meet the Glazers’ demanding price, the sale of the club has been delayed. As per reports, though, Ratcliffe is set to buy a 25 percent stake at Manchester United, and should he do so, Ratcliffe would look over the on-field administrative issues. Having said that, Ratcliffe currently owns French Ligue 1 club Nice and his experience of looking over at the footballing aspects in France could prove useful if he eventually takes over United. The numbers don’t lie in United’s case. Missing out on a top four spot in the Premier League on five occasions since 2014 does not help United’s case either. And add to that, their defeat to Bournemouth was their 35th home game loss in the Premier League since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013. During Alex Ferguson’s 21-year tenure at United, the Reds had lost only 34 games in the Premier League at Old Trafford. Rift with players There were hopes of reviving United’s long-lost glory when Cristiano Ronaldo joined the club from Juventus in 2021. United had finished second in the 2020-21 season, and had been pipped to challenge derby rivals City for the title in 2021. However, another below-par season saw United miss Champions League and finish the 2021-22 season in sixth place. And late last year, Ronaldo opened up on his issues with Erik ten Hag in an explosive interview with Piers Morgan, and the Portuguese’s contract was eventually terminated by the club. United finished in the top three in 2022-23 season, but this season has created even greater problems. Jadon Sancho has gone from being one of United’s youngest prospects to going out of favour with Ten Hag after a reported spat with the manager. Antony, United’s winger, had been accused to abusing his ex-girlfriend and was summoned by Brazilian police. United had released a statement following the incident, and was absent from first-team for a while. ‘Lack of concentration’ Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes apologised for Manchester United’s embarrassing defeat against Bournemouth as the Portugal star admitted his side did not have enough effort or quality.“I want to apologise for the performance. It was not acceptable, starting with me. I’m not talking about anyone else,” he said. “But I think everyone agrees in the dressing room that the performance was (not) at our level and we have to perform much better. “It was underperforming quality-wise, effort-wise and not as aggressive as we were in the last game against Chelsea. “If you don’t do your job, you’re not going to win the game,” he had said after the defeat to the Cherries. “We have to win and obviously wait for a good result on the other game for us .But we have to do our job first of all, and thinking and understanding that is going to be a tough game for us. But we are capable, more than able, to get the result,” he had added. With inputs from AFP