Report: Erik ten Hag to Remain Manchester United Manager; Contract Talks Expected

Manchester United is retaining Erik ten Hag as manager after "the club's end-of-season review culminated in a decision to keep the Dutchman—and he has agreed to remain at Old Trafford," according to David Ornstein of The Athletic.

His current contract only runs through this upcoming season, though there is an option to extend it by another year. Per Ornstein, the two sides will enter negotiations regarding a potential extension of that length.

Ten Hag's future at United was almost assuredly saved by his FA Cup final victory over Manchester City. Otherwise, he was coming off a season that saw the Red Devils finish eighth in the Premier League, the club's worst domestic placement since 1989-90.

United only managed 60 points, their second-worst tally in the Premier League era (which began in 1992-93), and finished with a minus-one goal differential (worst since 1989-90).

Ten Hag himself called the campaign "just rubbish" in May, though added that reaching a second consecutive FA Cup final was the "maximum possible" outcome given the injuries United faced.

He could point to this season's FA Cup triumph—and last year's win in the Carabao Cup—as successes under his two-year watch, ending what had been a five-year silverware drought. United also finished third in the Premier League during the 2022-23 campaign, behind only Manchester City and Arsenal.

This year's league results were undoubtedly a concern, but ten Hag has also taken over during a period of major upheaval at the club, with Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS purchasing a minority stake in the club in February.

The Glazer family remains the majority owners of the club but Ratcliffe has taken over football operations, a welcome change among supporters given the consternation surrounding the Glazers' ownership.

United's woes during the 20 years of the Glazers' ownership have run deep, and ten Hag was potentially in line to become the latest scapegoat of that overall institutional failing. But Ratcliffe's intervention in the club has brought hope, and ten Hag will be given at least one more chance to become the first United manager since Sir Alex Ferguson in 2012-13 to win a Premier League title.