Erik ten Hag's future had been in doubt but Man Utd decided to keep him and have now extended his stay at Old Trafford until 2026; Ten Hag led United to an eighth-placed finish in the 2023/24 season, their worst in the Premier League era, but beat rivals Manchester City to lift the FA Cup
Friday 5 July 2024 06:24, UK
Erik ten Hag has extended his Manchester United contract until 2026.
Ten Hag's future as United boss had been in doubt at the end of the season but the club decided to keep the Dutchman and he has been given an extra two years to continue at Old Trafford.
The deal continues on existing terms, and there is increased support around Ten Hag from strengthened football leadership team.
Discussions also continue on the potential refresh of his coaching staff.
Ten Hag said: "I am very pleased to have reached agreement with the club to continue working together.
"Looking back at the past two years, we can reflect with pride on two trophies and many examples of progression from where we were when I joined.
"However, we must also be clear that there is still lots of hard work ahead to reach the levels expected of Manchester United, which means challenging for English and European titles.
"In my discussions with the club, we have found complete unity in our vision for reaching those goals, and we are all strongly committed to making that journey together."
Mauricio Pochettino, Thomas Tuchel, Thomas Frank, Kieran McKenna and Gareth Southgate were all linked with taking over at United before the club opted to keep Ten Hag, who recently revealed on Dutch TV that he discovered the news while away with his family on holiday.
Ten Hag's original contract ended at the end of the 2024/25 season, with United having the option of extending it by a further 12 months.
Manchester United Sporting Director Dan Ashworth said: "With two trophies in the past two seasons, Erik has reinforced his record as one of the most consistently successful coaches in European football.
"While the club's review of last season highlighted areas for improvement, it also reached a clear conclusion that Erik was the best partner for us to work with in driving up standards and outcomes.
"This group of players and staff have already shown they are capable of competing and winning at the top level; now we need to do it more consistently.
"With our strengthened football leadership team now in place, we are looking forward to working hand-in-hand with Erik to achieve our shared ambitions for this football club."
The 54-year-old led United to a disappointing eighth-placed finish in the 2023/24 campaign, their worst in the Premier League era, but beat rivals Manchester City to lift the FA Cup - Ten Hag's second trophy in as many years.
The Dutchman had to contend with an injury-ravaged squad throughout the season but managed to salvage Europa League qualification with the victory over City at Wembley.
A post-season review concluded that Ten Hag deserves a chance to show what more he is capable of within the new sporting structure implemented following Ratcliffe's INEOS taking charge of football operations.
Erik ten Hag had looked doomed at Manchester United but that FA Cup win over Manchester City at Wembley has changed the mood.
Will he be able to build on this belated backing?
In The Debrief, Adam Bate takes a look...
Speaking after the news that Ten Hag was staying at Man Utd, Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville gave his thoughts on the decision to keep the Dutchman as manager.
"It's one of those that's not perfect, waiting two and a half weeks after the end of the season, and quite obviously flirting with other managers in the mean time. But I believe because he had such a disappointing season in the league, the club were well within their rights to be able to see what was out there in the market.
"But as we all know, the manager market has been quite difficult for a number of top clubs in Europe, and I'm happy they're maintained that stability into next season. I think they've come to the right conclusion, but they were within their rights to look at other options.
"The fact Ten Hag knows they looked at other options is not ideal, but he's got to accept when you finished where they did, there is a chance you could lose your job - so he should be happy, the club should be happy.
"The big thing for me is looking at Man Utd changing owners, sporting director, CEO, technical director and CFO, the five or six major positions, to have some stability in the football side is a sensible thing. It allows those people not in the club yet to build the foundations underneath the football side.
"Having to settle in a new manager in at the same time would've been more difficult. Any new manager would've said they wanted to look at the playing staff, they'd want new players, a transfer budget which Man Utd don't quite have at the moment because of PSR.
"It's a sensible thing for the club, and the right thing for Erik ten Hag."
Manchester United will start their 2024/25 Premier League season with a home fixture against Fulham, live on Sky Sports, and face Liverpool in the opening month of the season.
The opening game of the new campaign will be played on Friday August 16, with kick-off at 8pm.
United then travel to Brighton before their first big derby of the season at home to Liverpool with the game currently scheduled for Saturday August 31.
The reverse fixture will be played at the start of 2025 with a trip to Anfield on January 4.
Fans will have to wait until December for the first Manchester derby of the season, away at Manchester City on December 14. The reverse fixture at Old Trafford will be played on April 5.
Boxing Day will see Man Utd travel to Wolves, and they will finish the 2024/25 campaign at home to Aston Villa on May 25.
The 2024 summer transfer window in the Premier League and Scottish Premiership is officially open.
The window will close on August 30 at 11pm UK time in England and at 11.30pm in Scotland.
The Premier League and Scottish Premiership brought forward Deadline Day to link up with the other major leagues in Europe. The closing dates were set following discussions with the leagues in England, Germany, Italy, Spain and France.
