HOW MUCH AMOR CAN THEY TAKE?

All of a sudden, the vilified Ten Hag doesn't seem too bad

- BY DAVID McDONNELL

SUDDENLY the Erik ten Hag era, which yielded two trophies and European football in successive seasons, does not seem such a major blot on Manchester United's recent troubled history.

The same cannot be said of his successor, Ruben Amorim, who has dragged the once-great club to its lowest point of the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era in the space of just nine months.

After last season's 15th-placed finish in the Premier League, United's lowest since relegation in the 1973-74 campaign, Amorim knew he could not afford a poor start to the new term.

But one point from United's opening two league games was followed by Wednesday's abject League Cup exit to League Two Grimsby (right), which has increased the pressure on Amorim.

The Portuguese head coach admitted on United's preseason tour of America this summer that he had used up all the credit he had in the bank when he arrived.

Now, just three games into the season, Amorim faces a must-win fixture at home to newly-promoted Burnley tomorrow, with fans starting to turn on him after backing him last season.