Erik ten Hag's challenge at Manchester United is similar to Jose Mourinho's

A penny for the thoughts of the Manchester United power-brokers now Tottenham are preparing to dust off the Champions League banners.

Spurs are, of course, coached by Antonio Conte, available to United during that soul-searching week in October after supporters poured onto Sir Matt Busby Way with 20-odd minutes to play against Liverpool.

As reported at the time, United were not keen on Conte despite his receptiveness to replacing Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. It is tricky to conclude what the worse decision was: standing by Solskjaer with Conte available or appointing Ralf Rangnick five weeks later?

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Rangnick talks a great game but his team plays a horrendous one. Supporters have relished the grenades he has lobbed towards the doorframe of the United dressing room but he is the club's worst manager since David Moyes. Brighton was the nadir for many United supporters aged 40 and under.

United wrote off their season before Christmas with the peculiar plan of hiring a caretaker and then an interim. Whether the latter was Rangnick, Ernesto Valverde, Lucien Favre or some other underwhelming and unworthy candidate, United would not have finished in the top four.

Rangnick has strategically attempted to divide his tenure between before and after the January internationals. Everyone knows about the seismic news story that broke in between the Fergie-time victory over West Ham and the FA Cup elimination by Middlesbrough.

United rose to fourth by beating West Ham but there had already been red flags: the performances at Norwich and Newcastle, the deserved defeat to Wolves, the second-half against Aston Villa and the first-half against Brentford. February was humdrum, bar the