“Really bad…” Matthijs de Ligt hands Erik ten Hag Manchester United sack verdict

Matthijs de Ligt has opened up on Manchester United sacking Erik ten Hag as new head coach Rúben Amorim has his first day at the club.

Rúben Amorim had his first day at Manchester United following his appointment as the club’s new head coach on Monday as he gets to grips with his new job.

His arrival follows the sacking of former manager Erik ten Hag, who left the club 14th in the Premier League table and 21st in the Europa League after three months of the 2024/25 season.

Read More: Ruben Amorim is already prepared for ‘difficult’ Man United challenge which hurt Erik ten Hag

In the four games between the Dutchman’s sacking and the Portuguese coach’s arrival, Ruud van Nistelrooy took charge as an interim manager, earning three wins and a draw to lift the team’s spirits.

These came in the form of victories against Leicester City, once in the league and once in the Carabao Cup, as well as a win over Greek side PAOK in the Europa League.

De Ligt’s honest admission

However, United defender Matthijs de Ligt, who Ten Hag signed in the summer, has admitted that he feels very bad for his former manager, who he also worked with at Ajax during his teenage years.

“It’s always quite difficult in general if a manager gets sacked,” the 25-year-old told the press after the Leicester game. “I have a really good relationship with Erik, I really like him a person as well as a human being.

“That way, I felt the most bad for him because I know what he does every day to get the team performing, so that’s quite difficult.

“In the end, you know what football is about; if the results are not there, everybody needs to be questioned: the trainer, the players.

“In the end the trainer gets sacked, the players can stay, so we always have to look at ourselves, so I feel really bad for him. In the end you have to keep going, you can’t stay in the past, it’s over now with him.”

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