We 'sacked' Erik ten Hag to predict Man United season with new boss

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Following Manchester United's 3-0 defeat to Tottenham on Sunday, Erik ten Hag's position as manager is under intense scrutiny.

Goals from Brennan Johnson, Dejan Kulusevski and Dominic Solanke condemned 10-man United to a sobering home defeat at Old Trafford, with Bruno Fernandes' first-half red card ensuring it would be a day to forget for the club, and particularly, manager Erik ten Hag. Although United are set to stick with Ten Hag, for this week anyway, the Dutchman is under real pressure to get results after three defeats in six Premier League games so far this season.

Manchester Evening News' Chief Manchester United writer Samuel Luckhurst believes it's time for Erik ten Hag to go, echoing the thoughts of some fans, and pundits, as the speculation continues to ramp up. That got us thinking, what would happen to United's season if Ten Hag was sacked? We simulated the rest of the season on Football Manager to find out.

READ MORE: United make Erik ten Hag sack decision after shocking Tottenham defeat

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Manchester United's 2024/25 season predicted if Erik ten Hag was sacked

To set up this simulation, we updated every Premier League club's transfers, fixtures and squads to reflect real-life in Football Manager 2024 and simulated until September 30th, before using the in-game editor to terminate Ten Hag's contract, we then simulated until the end of the season to see what happened to the team's results in all competitions.

United turned to former England manager Gareth Southgate to take the reins at Old Trafford following Ten Hag's sacking in this simulated season, and although the former England defender didn't manage many wins against the big six during the campaign, United didn't lose many either and even managed a win against City in December thanks to a late goal from Joshua Zirkzee.

Come the end of the season, the Reds managed to accumulate 72 points with Southgate in charge in 2024/25, which is 12 more than Ten Hag managed last season, but three less than in 2022/23. United's record in the league was 21 wins, nine draws and just eight defeats, with Southgate only losing five league matches all season after taking over, with the English coach going for a more solid style, which led to only 60 goals being scored, but on the other side of that, they only conceded 40, which is 18 less than last season.

Southgate didn't make any huge changes to the team's formation, however, with United playing a structured 4-2-3-1 for the majority of the season, with Manuel Ugarte and Casemiro both playing in defensive midfield and Bruno Fernandes playing as number ten, whilst Rashford and Garnacho were favourite in the wide areas. Here's how the best XI looked under Southgate:

Rasmus Hojlund had a great campaign under Southgate, scoring 18 league goals and leading the club's goalscoring charts, with the back four of Luke Shaw, Lisandro Martinez, Matthijs de Ligt and Diogo Dalot making a mostly settled back four.

Manchester United's 2024/25 results

And Southgate's approach worked in terms of both performances and results overall, because United managed a fourth-place league finish under Southgate, with the Reds finishing above Chelsea and Tottenham come the end of the season. Liverpool won the league, ahead of City and Arsenal, who both tailed off towards the end of the season.

Although United didn't do particularly well in the domestic cups, reaching the fifth round and quarter-final of the FA Cup and Carabao Cup respectively, the Reds enjoyed a great run in the Europa League, beating the likes of Bayer Leverkusen and Rangers on the way to the final. And, with Lazio the opposition in the final, a tight game was eventually settled by a Bruno Fernandes goal in the second half, as United ended the season with a major trophy once again.

This Football Manager simulation predicts that should Erik ten Hag lose his job due to the club's recent performances, there's still hope for United to have a successful season, and there's still the chance to win a major trophy. In our simulation, Southgate improved the side's performances and results, winning the Europa League and securing a fourth-place finish.

Of course, this is only a simulation of what could happen, but it just goes to show that the squad United have is capable of doing much better than what they are producing right now.

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