Ex-Manchester United striker slams Erik ten Hag and calls for Premier League rival to be appointed manager

Former Manchester United striker Teddy Sheringham has slammed Erik ten Hag and called for a rival Premier League boss to be appointed at Old Trafford.

United were comfortably beaten by Crystal Palace 4-0 on Monday as a brace from Michael Olise and goals from Jean-Philippe Mateta and Tyrick Mitchell sealed the win for the home side. Sheringham has hit out at the direction of travel under Ten Hag and thinks a change is necessary.

The former United striker said: “If your leader, the manager, is not leading in the right way, other people follow that standard. Ten Hag isn’t leading from the front. I know he’s had some difficult decisions to make with certain players, but for some reason he just doesn’t come across with the personality required to take Manchester United forward. He doesn’t have the personality. It’s all a little bit dreary. He’s trying to pull the wool over the eyes of the journalists when he says that the club are doing well and controlled the game – what game is he watching? It’s delusional. He’s giving out the wrong vibes as the leader of Manchester United.”

He added: “If Manchester United win the FA Cup, will it give ten Hag a stay of execution? I suppose it probably would, but, for me, looking at this long-term, I think changes are needed and Manchester United need to get it done sooner than later.”

And in terms of a potential new manager, who would the former United, Spurs and England striker like to see in charge, should Ten Hag depart.

Sheringham, speaking to Genting Casino, added: “I’m still looking at [Brighton’s Roberto] De Zerbi and thinking he could have the ability to manage Manchester United. He seems a little bit temperamental, but I quite like his ethics and the way he speaks about football and plays the game. He wants his teams to play in a certain way and you can tell that he loves football. I like his optimistic view of football and I like the way his teams play.”