Pep Guardiola has discussed Manchester United's decision to part ways with Erik ten Hag after a poor start to the season.
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Ten Hag shown the door after West Ham defeatGuardiola weighed in on sack decisionAdmitted not getting results is detrimental in footballFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
Ten Hag’s tenure at Manchester United was cut short after a 2-1 defeat against West Ham, which marked the Dutchman’s final game in charge. The decision came as United struggled to find consistent form, leaving them 14th in the Premier League standings.
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However, Ten Hag received support from his fellow Premier League colleagues with Guardiola insisting that job security in football seems far less stable than in other professions.
"I feel sorry for him," Guardiola remarked. "I don't see architects, doctors, or teachers who get the sack, people expect results from us. If I didn't get results I wouldn't be here, it is a business. you have to take results."
THE BIGGER PICTURE
Liverpool head coach Arne Slot expressed his disappointment over his compatriot’s dismissal: "He is a Dutch manager, so that makes it even harder for me, for us as Dutch people. My first thoughts are with him as a person. We are all in this job so we know that it can happen but if it happens … Especially because I know him a little bit and I know how much work he puts into it, and then to get this news for him is of course a pity.
"But we also know, especially us coming from Holland, how well he did at Ajax and that he won two trophies over here so we will see him I think in the near future at a big club again, but at this moment for him and his family it's of course… Tragedy is maybe a bit too much to say but it's a big disappointment."
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta commented: "It's always sad to see one of our colleagues lose his job," he said. "I think he'd done a really good job, he'd won titles there, he'd changed a lot of things. He's a phenomenal coach and it's difficult.
"Unfortunately when these things happen, the exposure we have as managers, we are always in the line. Especially when you look at the game, how they lost it, it was incredible. But they made the decision and I wish him all the best for his new chapter."
AFPWHAT NEXT?
United’s search for a permanent manager is expected to progress swiftly, with Ruben Amorim, Sporting CP's young and highly-regarded coach, emerging as the frontrunner. It has been reported that United hope to finalise an agreement with the 39-year-old ahead of the weekend’s high-profile matchup against Chelsea at Old Trafford.