‘We won't be bailing him out again' - the untold story of Erik ten Hag's sacking at Manchester United

The curtains were closed at Erik ten Hag's Hale home when he left Manchester earlier this month. This turned out to be a Red October.

‘Bluffer’ is the biggest insult Roy Keane could ever level at anyone. A time-served United player used that word to describe Ten Hag in his first season.

Players who had seen managers come and go - and seen some off - saw through Ten Hag, a source close to one of them said. A position that ought to have been untenable in May was prolonged until October. United went backwards before the clocks went back.

From April, Ten Hag started to linger by the Old Trafford tunnel and milk the applause of the United supporters. It was a deliberate and desperate measure to demonstrate the apparent adoration reserved for him. He even did it when he re-emerged for the second half against Liverpool in September. The problem was United were 2-0 down.

READ MORE: 'No excuses' - why United sacked Ten Hag

READ MORE: United face being restricted to free agent managers

Eight days after Arne Slot schooled Ten Hag, a United staff member clarified the team coached by Ten Hag in Mark van der Maarel’s testimonial at FC Utrecht had actually won the game. Some desks had erroneously reported Ten Hag was on the losing side.

Seeking a correction was fair and someone at United was irked by the “anti-Ten Hag” narrative. Ten Hag still had allies to go into bat for him but he was on a sticky wicket.

He never recovered from an annus horribilis that was still salvaged with a trophy. The extension of his contract made this season an extension of last season, with United familiarly bad.

Ten Hag’s last act was to conduct a pre-match press conference at West Ham for a match he will not manage in. That is a suitably shambolic