It's time for Ten Hag to step up and save United

Somehow he has to find a way to drag this blundering giant of football out of its spiral

- Peter Hall

AS Erik ten Hag danced with delight at Wembley in February after helping his new side end their six-year trophy drought, it seemed the grandiose Manchester United of old were back. The years of toil in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era, the turgid football under Louis van Gaal, the tempestuous Jose Mourinho period and the tactical naivety of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s spell had all been forgotten.

Supporters were adamant a long overdue title tilt was upon us ahead of this season. Instead, this blundering giant of football finds itself in a dizzying spiral to which there is seemingly no escape.

Off the pitch as well as on it, Manchester United are in full-blown crisis, despite what Ten Hag tries to downplay, with the world’s most expensively assembled squad so far behind noisy neighbours Manchester City, in all areas, that the champions are a dot on the horizon.

And slumping to a worst start after 10 games of a season since Ron Atkinson’s United in 1986-87 this term is a mess entirely of the club’s own making.

Ownership of the club remains uncertain almost 12 months after the Glazer family put it on the market. Fan protests take place at every home match, with them desperate to see an end to the Americans’ 18-year stranglehold, one that has saddled United with hundreds of millions of debt. What is raising supporters’ blood pressure most is there are two credible bidders — Manchester-born billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe and a Qatari consortium — waiting in the wings.