Manchester United manager could have no complaints if sacked - says Jamie Carragher
Manchester United manager Erik ten hag could have no complaints if he were to be sacked following the Red Devils' 4-0 thrashing by Crystal Palace, says former Liverpool defender-turned-TV pundit Jamie Carragher.
Sky Sports regular Carragher labelled United “one of the most poorly-coached teams in the Premier League” after watching the defeat - the 13th of the club's Premier League campaign.
Michael Olise bagged a brace for Palace, while Jean-Philippe Mateta and Tyrick Mitchell were also on target at Selhurst Park, with United now facing the real possibility of missing out on European football next season.
United boss ten Hag fielded a makeshift back four because of an injury crisis, with captain Bruno Fernandes also unavailable, but former Liverpool captain Carragher had little sympathy for the Dutchman.
Carragher told Sky Sports: “This is one of the most poorly-coached teams in the Premier League. It’s not an opinion, that’s a fact.
“I get that (the backline was unavailable), I understand, your performance level will drop and your results will not be as good when you miss your best players, that’s obvious.
“But Erik ten Hag needs performances. You’ve got to make us believe there’s something there or working to something. If he was to lose his job, I don’t think he could have any complaints.
“I struggled to see how United would win, but I thought Palace might win 1-0 or 2-1 in a tight game. No Manchester United team should be getting beaten 4-0 by Crystal Palace.''
Meanwhile, United midfielder Christian Eriksen said the players must take the blame for what went wrong at Palace.
“A big disappointment,” Eriksen told BBC Sport. “We just had an off-day and we weren’t in it.
“It is what it is. We can’t really change the injury things. We have to do what we can on the pitch to change it.
“Today it didn’t matter who we played. Everyone could have done better.
“I don’t know what the conclusion is for how it went. We weren’t good enough.
“We tried to do what we could, but we were not good enough. We’ll take the blame as players.”
Want more on the issues affecting the North? Our podcast, From the North answers the questions that matter to our region.