Liverpool could make sure Erik ten Hag’s Man Utd era ends with Jurgen Klopp’s in the FA Cup on Sunday.
Eras must come to an end. That was the headline-stealing vow made by Erik ten Hag as he was unveiled as Manchester United manager in the summer of 2022. But his era at Old Trafford could come to an end at the same time as Jurgen Klopp’s at Liverpool if he oversees a 17th defeat of the season on Sunday.
Ten Hag was responding to a question about Liverpool and Manchester City’s recent dominance when he produced the statement that sent shivers down the spines of the United faithful.
Many believed him, too, last season when he lifted silverware at the first time of asking in the Carabao Cup and guided the club back into the Champions League with a third-place Premier League finish.
United finished eight points ahead of Liverpool, who failed to qualify for the Champions League and looked well-positioned to start hunting down City.
But that momentum has burst this season. The Red Devils, ravaged by injuries and off-field controversy, view the FA Cup as their final hope of silverware.
The defence of the Carabao Cup ended at the second hurdle with a 3-0 defeat to Newcastle United at Old Trafford in a rematch of last February’s final.
United’s Champions League campaign went even worse, winning just one of their six Group A games to finish rock bottom and crash out of Europe entirely.
Erik ten Hag’s Man Utd era is at risk of ending already.
In the Premier League, United are six points behind fifth-place Tottenham Hotspur and trail fourth-place Aston Villa by eight.
The top five look likely to qualify for next season’s new-look Champions League, but United may have left it too late. It would take a special fightback to make the cut.
Meanwhile, Klopp’s shock mid-season announcement that he was to leave Liverpool after nine years this summer has only made his side stronger.
The Reds took United’s Carabao Cup crown last month and are level on points with Premier League leaders Arsenal in a three-way title race including City.
They also have a favourable pathway to the Europa League final, with a quarter-final against Atalanta to come and Benfica or Marseille waiting in the final four.
Man Utd can’t afford to lose to Liverpool in the FA Cup.
Liverpool can probably afford to fall short this weekend and exit the FA Cup. Klopp has enough on his plate during his farewell tour. United, and more specifically Ten Hag, cannot.
Don’t get it twisted. Klopp’s era at Anfield is coming to an end this summer. But no trophies and a failure to finish in the Premier League’s top five could result in the end of Ten Hag’s at the same time.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s 27.7 per cent stake in United has brought a fresh sense of uncertainty about whether the club’s new sporting structure will seek a fresh start or hand the 54-year-old the third year of his contract.
FA Cup glory would almost certainly guarantee the latter. A taste of defeat against one of the teams he initially set out to overthrow on Sunday, though? Ten Hag would be considered a man at risk.
