Man Utd will have to double David Moyes exit fee to sack Erik ten Hag amid 'toxic' dressing room claim

Manchester United face paying a huge fee to sack Erik ten Hag if they decide to move on from the Dutchman. The Red Devils suffered another big home defeat on Wednesday night, losing 3-0 to Newcastle United, exiting the Carabao Cup.

The result came after a heavy home defeat to Manchester City, and Ten Hag is now under real pressure amid a disappointing start to the season. The Red Devils are eight points off the Premier League top four, out of the Carabao Cup and looking up at the top two in their Champions League group at the halfway stage.

On top of that, the Jadon Sancho situation continues to dominate headlines, with the winger frozen out of the first-team squad, and fans are now booing their team - and perhaps Ten Hag, too - off the pitch.

Ten Hag has insisted that he must 'take responsibility' for Wednesday night's defeat, stating that his side are in a 'bady way' just days after saying they were 'on the up'. The walls are closing in on the Dutchman, but his contract might just give him more time.

That's because he has a deal until 2025 priced at £9million per year, and combined with his coaching staff, who would also need to be dismissed, United face paying £15million to sack Ten Hag, according to The Mirror, which is more than double the £7million they paid to get rid of David Moyes earlier than expected.

In the meantime, Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson has issued a damning verdict on the situation, saying: "I don't see how much further this goes on, I really don't, I read in the paper it could cost £15m. It just cost them £80m in Sancho, they chased a kid for how long and he says one thing and is completely out and will probably be out on loan in January and they'll probably be paying half his wages.

"This needs to get sorted out but personally I think it is toxic, I don’t take too much notice of it behind the scenes, but it is toxic on the pitch and that is where it counts. At the moment they are all over the place and if it wasn't for a last-minute penalty save against Copenhagen, they would have drawn at home to Copenhagen, let's get serious here. He is under serious pressure and they have to have a meeting and see what they are going to do. There are ways of losing football matches and, for me, he has lost the players. You do not start getting beaten the way they are getting beaten, there are ways of losing and this is not good in my opinion."