Manchester United warned of 'painful reality' as Erik ten Hag offered manager job

Joleon Lescott feels Manchester United won't get any closer to winning the Premier League title whilst Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp remain in charge of Manchester City and Liverpool.

With Erik ten Hag on the verge of taking over, the ambition is evident as the Reds look to return to the heights of English and European football. Their failure to claim silverware will see the Dutchman lead United looking for a first trophy in six seasons.

The former City defender believes the 52-year-old can do what Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Jose Mourinho and Louis van Gaal failed to do before him. But Lescott urged that patience is needed.

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He said speaking to BT Sport: "It’s patience. It’s a thing that Man United as a club, as staff, as players, aren’t usually used to having because this club has always had success. Now is a period where they need to be patient, for me, he can be the manager that brings them back to glory.

"Hopefully not! But he needs time. I don’t think United will get any closer to winning the title until Pep and Klopp leave their teams.

"It’s a results-based business, we know that, but United need to change their approach because they haven’t had success the way they’ve wanted to do it in recent years, they’ve wanted to get back to challenging for title and looking for quick fixes. Now, they need to put pieces in place that will allow them to challenge in two or three seasons.

"As painful as that sounds to United fans, that’s the reality of it all."

Ten Hag could end his time with Ajax on a high. The Dutcha giants are on course to win their third straight Eredivisie title as they sit four points clear at the top of the table.

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