Manchester United battle to draw at Aston Villa amid Erik ten Hag speculation

Manchester United battled for a 0-0 draw at Aston Villa that may well have bought under-fire manager Erik ten Hag time to right the ship.

All eyes were on the Dutchman at Villa Park after their home humbling by Tottenham and Thursday’s problematic Europa League draw in Porto intensified talk about his place in the Old Trafford hotseat.

Co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe sidestepped a question about Ten Hag’s position in the build-up to the trip to Villa Park, where he watched on as United earned a point against Unai Emery’s in-form hosts.

The Red Devils only have two wins to show from their opening seven Premier League matches but Sunday felt like it alleviated some of the pressure that had been building ahead of the international break.

In truth, both sides underperformed having been involved in energy-sapping European matches, with Villa nothing like the side that beat Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Bruno Fernandes sent a second half free-kick off the bar as United sought a winner that so nearly went Villa’s way in stoppage time, only for Diogo Dalot to produce a key block on Jaden Philogene’s attempt.

Ten Hag made four alterations from the Porto draw, including the eye-catching defensive switch from Matthijs de Ligt and Lisandro Martinez to Jonny Evans and Harry Maguire.

The United boss explained it was down to “rotation”, just as he did after withdrawing top performer Marcus Rashford midway through Thursday’s draw.

The 26-year-old made a bright start in the midlands, roaring forward after winning possession at the halfway line and cutting away from his man before forcing Emiliano Martinez into action with a thumping effort.

Villa soon had a chance of their own as Morgan Rogers made space under pressure