What Erik ten Hag said about his position as Man Utd manager after Sir Jim Ratcliffe purchase

Erik ten Hag has said he has earned the confidence of Sir Jim Ratcliffe and does not fear for his position Manchester United manager, following the 71-year-old's purchase of a partial stake in the club this week.

It was confirmed on Tuesday that Ratcliffe has officially become a shareholder at United, with the Ineos lead shareholder addressing the media following the announcement. In a wide range of topics discussed, Ratcliffe was asked about Ten Hag's role as manager and, while he admitted repeated changes in the area have not helped in the past, but it was far from a ringing endorsement of the Dutchman's position.

Asked on Friday whether if Ratcliffe has confidence in him, Ten Hag replied: "Absolutely. I have that feeling from when we have so many talks and we are very aligned. We have the same ambition and we are very aligned in the process.

"We speak a lot and there are many conversations with him [Ratcliffe] and Sir Dave Brailsford about this club, the team and structures. We are very aligned and I embrace totally their ambitions and they fit with the ambitions I have, with the ambitions I had when I came in.

"I am 18 months in and I see we are going in the right direction. We have had setbacks this season but you see the team coming, a squad developing and progressing. Just keep going in the process, work hard on the training pitch, during games.

"It’s important to have the players fit and to construct a squad that is robust. I’m sure we will be very strong and we will be even stronger when we add to this squad."

Ten Hag also said that Ratcliffe's arrival does not add any more pressure on him as manager, but admitted there will be questions asked if United miss out the Champions League places this season.

"That is always the case. I see this team is developing, is progressing. We also have the right age across the squad and we can make that even stronger and they will grow and we will do everything in our power. We know there is strong competition and we know our reasons behind why we are not in that positions and we still have to catch up.

"We are still in a moment where every game is a final for us because we have to be in the Champions League. The players want this and we have that strong ambition. We belong there, we believe, but we have to prove it."