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Sir Jim Ratcliffe has taken a brutal swipe at Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag, just as his future looks as bleaker than ever.

Ten Hag's United are in free fall, winning just three of their 10 games in all competitions so far this season and remain without a victory in four. The Red Devils, who the Dutchman has been in charge of since June 2022, threw away a two-goal lead against Porto in the Europa League on Thursday before captain Bruno Fernandes was sent off for the second time in five days.

Super sub Harry Maguire popped up with a 91st-minute equaliser and rescued a dramatic 3-3 draw in Portugal, but his heroics were nowhere near enough to alleviate the unrelenting pressure on his manager. United make the trip to Aston Villa this Sunday, where co-owner Ratcliffe will be in attendance, potentially watching Ten Hag manage the Red Devils for the last time.

Currently in Barcelona watching INEOS Britannia compete in the America's Cup, Ratcliffe was asked about Ten Hag's predicament and whether he had faith in him. Speaking to BBC Sport, the chairman of petrochemicals conglomerate INEOS replied: "I think I don't want to answer that. I like Erik. He's a very good coach but at the end of the day it's not my call.

"It's the management team that's running Manchester United that have to decide how we best run the team in many different respects. But that team that's running Manchester United has only been together since June or July.

"They weren't there in January, February, March or April – Omar , Dan Ashworth - they only arrived in July. They've only been there - you can count it in weeks almost - they've not been there a long time, so they need to take stock and make some sensible decisions."

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Erik ten Hag's future at Manchester United is deeply uncertain ( Eric Verhoeven/Soccrates/Getty Images)

But it was Ratcliffe's final comment which was most cutting, as he declared: "Our objective is very clear - we want to take Manchester United back to where it should be, and it's not there yet, obviously - that's very clear. There's work to be done."

After weeks of deliberation and talks with other managers following the end of last season, Berrada and Ashworth made the decision to keep Ten Hag in charge, later triggering a one-year extension clause in his existing contract. It came after the Red Devils had won the FA Cup but also slumped to eighth in the Premier League, their worst league finish in 30 years.

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