Erik Ten Hag Not Getting Sacked
You Can Make Wrong Choices All Season And Still Keep Your Job
“It’s not whether you’re right or wrong that’s important,” George Soros once said, “but how much money you make when you’re right and how much you lose when you’re wrong.” You can be wrong half the time and still make a fortune.”
― Morgan Housel, The Psychology of Money
The above statement reflects the principle that in certain fields, particularly investing, success does not require being right every time, and this is within the context of getting high returns on wins.
Even if an investor is only right half the time, the profit from successful investments can be large enough to cover the losses and still generate a substantial overall profit.
This is the analogy that comes to mind when I think of the situation at Old Trafford as winning a trophy after finishing 8th in the Premier League might have earned Erik Ten Hag another chance at being the Head Coach.
The latest news from Skysports is that Erik ten Hag will stay on as Manchester United manager after the review of the 2023/2024 football season.
I don’t know what to feel, but somewhere in my heart, I feel it's not a good decision to keep him.
So many traumatic things happened to fans like me this season. I still can’t believe that the FA Cup trophy was enough to keep him at Old Trafford.
The Major Traumatic Highlights of the 2023/2024 Season
- Beating Wolves
We struggled with both wins against Wolverhampton. It was even worse when we played at the Stretford end.
Winning 4–3 away, and 1–0 at home was enough to secure the 3 points, but the overall performance in those matches, was tragic!
Trust our fan base to milk this Kobbie Mainoo’s late winner. We dug in so deep, it felt like we qualified for a final.
- Losing Back-to-Back
We lost the game playing away to Tottenham. That didn’t hurt me so much. Spurs have always been an inevitable devil by their standards.
But…
Losing to Arsenal, Brighton, and Bayern Munich in a row left me broken. Argh!!!!!
Jesus wept, but I wailed.
Then came the Manchester Derby.
We were thrashed on home soil, and also as visitors.
I was left without honor — undignified. No Bragging Right to Hold on to.
I was happy that Onana did not concede more goals in those games.
The Problem with Palace
Crystal Palace did a double on us in the EPL this season.
How and why are they so difficult to beat in the premier league?
The funny thing about the 4–0 thrashing we received when we played away to Palace was that we were losing 2–0 at half time, we hilariously believed we would make a comeback, just like we did against Aston Villa.
Brothers! We were humiliated without pity.
Mateta humbled Evans with that body movement.
I fell to my knees.
Then came the Champions League performances. We were terrible in every match.
I mean, every single game we played in the Champions League.
This was the result table before we finally lost to Bayern Munich at Old Trafford.
God! It was painful
Lack of Ability to beat Bournemouth
Bournemouth beat us 3–0 at Old Trafford.
No, we didn’t have a red card.
We played 20 shots that day, and only 3 were on target. Unbelievable. We shot blanks for an entire 90 minutes.
Bournemouth had only 4 shots on target, and 3 of them went past Onana into the back of the net.
The Coventry Story — FA Cup Semi-Final.
We blew a 3-goal lead and almost conceded a fourth goal in the last minute.
We spoilt their party by winning on penalties.
Ben Sheaf (center) is consoled by his Coventry teammates after failing to put Manchester United in their place.
I wish we lost that game. No big team should play that kind of football and get to the final.
I was numb. I couldn’t comprehend what was happening.
I wasn’t even sure if they were a championship side. It felt like Manchester United just played Real Madrid in a semi-final.
The shameful EPL season made us shameless.
That’s why we latched onto that FA Cup victory like scavengers. We were starved of winnings, goals, and decent gameplay this season.
We scored 57 goals in the EPL. Luton — the recently promoted championship team scored 52 goals. Brentford that finished 16th scored 56 goals.
Let’s flip it to the stats of top teams, of which Manchester United should be part of them…
Manchester City scored 96 goals
Arsenal scored 91 goals
Ladies and gentlemen, even Chelsea who had a rough start to the season scored 77 goals.
Newcastle scored 85 goals. You have to give it to Eddie Howe sometimes. What a coach!
We have a Ronaldo Wannabe, a Robben Wannabe, a Dr. MBE, a ‘Greater than KDB’, 5 times UCL winners, and a striker whose name sounds like Haaland, and yet, 57 goals!!!
47% EPL win rate, a negative goal difference, and the worst gameplay from a top team.
Outplayed in literally every match.
Maybe they have their reasons, but I think the kind of football ETH is trying to implement at Old Trafford will only work if Manchester United is playing in the Eredivisie — the Netherlands League.
Perhaps Antony can beat more defenders and Casemiro should be able to string passes properly to a teammate there.
Onana will save more shots, and the defenders will keep more shots from getting to him there.
It’s hard to comprehend.
I just hope we do well next season — though my hope isn’t as high as it was two seasons ago.
Why is the FA Cup Trophy Not Enough?
For a club like Manchester United with a rich historical success, global brand, expectations, comparison with rivals, legacy, and prestige, these are not the type of stories we tell when we have a successful season.
We boast of more things, things that even the likes of Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool, and Chelsea can’t boast of.
Check our trophy cabinet, you will know what I’m talking about.
I know the decision is final, but I think it’s a big mistake.
Let me know your thoughts in the comments
Thanks for reading!
