Ten Hag delivers duller football while Man United drifts on

BIRMINGHAM, England – If Sir Jim Ratcliffe were to invest £1.25 billion in Manchester United to enjoy the thrill that comes with being associated with one of the world's biggest football clubs, he might just want his money back… unless, he gets his fun out of firing a manager.

When Erik ten Hags United left the pitch at Villa Park on Sunday after securing a 0-0 draw against Aston Villa, they recorded the club's worst start to a Premier League season with eight points from seven games. You have to go back to 1989 in the old First Division to find a more difficult start, when Alex Ferguson's side managed just seven points. There will have been no joy for Ratcliffe watching from the stands, just worry about what to do with his underperforming coach.

United are winless in five games and have scored just five goals in the Premier League – only Southampton (four) have scored fewer – and they have already suffered humiliating 3-0 home defeats to Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur.

This draw at Villa might keep him in his job for now, but if Ratcliffe and his Ineos team decide to show even more patience, in reality they would surely just be delaying the inevitable. Ten Hag is simply not up to the task and results and performances are the ultimate proof of that. Yes, his strikers are nowhere near good enough for a club of United's stature, but Ten Hag was involved in the signings of Rasmus Højlund, Antony and Joshua Zirkzee, so he cannot escape responsibility for his team's toothlessness.

Ratcliffe, who took charge of United's football operations in February after his investment made him a minority owner alongside the Glazer family, decided against sacking Ten Hag at the end of last season after the former Ajax coach failed to win the FA Cup had won a surprise win against Manchester City at Wembley. Ten Hag had just led United to their worst Premier League finish of eighth place and the club was speaking openly to possible successors including Mauricio Pochettino, Thomas Tuchel, Roberto De Zerbi and Kieran McKenna. Gareth Southgate was also discussed.

But Ten Hag survived after a two-week wait when he was told he was still United's man with the promise that things would gradually improve.

Yet here we are in the first week of October, United sitting 14th in the Premier League with just two wins against Fulham and Southampton.

Two days ago Ratcliffe celebrated the success of his boat Ineos Britannia in becoming the first British team since 1964 to qualify for the final of the America's Cup. But when he left Villa Park, his football team was rapidly declining and all eyes were on him and his four senior directors – Dave Brailsford (Ineos sporting director), Omar Berrada (United managing director), Dan Ashworth (football director) and Jason Wilcox ( technical director) – look as gloomy as a Soviet-era Politburo in the director's box.

But there is no sign that United's poor start to the season will be enough to convince Ratcliffe and his team to change manager. Financial considerations are a big part of their dilemma, with United posting annual losses of £113m last month, but at some point sporting matters will come to the fore, particularly as qualification for the Champions League next season becomes increasingly unlikely.

But after the game, Ten Hag was defiant. He believes things will get better and is not afraid for his job.

“We (Ten Hag and Ratcliffe) always talk, every week,” Ten Hag said. “We’re all on board together, we’re on the same page knowing what we’re going through, it’s a long-term process.”

“We survived two very tough away games. This is a team, we showed the belief and confidence that we have. I have no idea it could be any different (than the board supporting him). We communicate very openly and transparently.” “

Ratcliffe and his Ineos team have a pre-scheduled board meeting at United on Tuesday, so Ten Hag's position will undoubtedly be up for discussion. At this point, however, the most likely scenario will be for Ten Hag to limp along in the hope that results and performances improve.

The lack of an obvious replacement is another issue working in Ten Hag's favor at the moment. Tuchel, Southgate and former Chelsea manager Graham Potter are all unemployed and available, but each has as many negatives as positives, so the view might be that jettisoning Ten Hag in favor of either one could be counterproductive .

But Ratcliffe made himself Britain's richest man through big decisions and smart investments – he knew when to take a risk and when to wait.

If he feels that staying at Ten Hag is the smart option at the moment, games like the one he saw at Villa Park will do little to support that point of view.

United are drifting, playing boring football and posing no threat to the teams they would once have considered their rivals.

So Ten Hag may survive for now, but Ratcliffe's patience won't last forever.