Liverpool's Loss To Man Utd May Define Ten Hag's Legacy

In a tense matchup for the FA Cup quarter-final, Manchester United and Liverpool met at the Old Trafford stadium in the wake of Man City and Chelsea having just passed through to the semi-finals.

Both teams delivered an outstanding performance as highlights of the 4-3 game show, with United scoring first but the Merseysideiders taking the lead before the break. Just before the main time ended, Manchester equalised the score and brought the game into overtime where the rivals again shared goals. United finally came out ahead with the winning goal before the half-time whistle.

Erik Ten Hag’s team celebrated its win fervently, but the implications of the outcome for the manager may reach even farther than the club’s progress toward the FA Cup.

United’s Management Has Been Changing

No matter how the rest of Man Utd’s season plays out, Ten Hag’s future will undoubtedly remain a fiery topic until his next move becomes clear.

The only thing that is certain at this point is that his future at Old Trafford has been up in the air since the Ineos Group took over ownership of the team. Chairman Sir Jim Ratcliffe is currently making huge changes, and it seems that nothing is off the table.

Still, few are under greater scrutiny than the Dutchman himself. Rumours have linked England manager Gareth Southgate, who called the reports “disrespectful,” as a possible replacement for Ten Hag - apparently one of nine potential candidates in consideration.

But with the recent triumph over Liverpool, that list may well no longer be necessary. Ten Hag has suggested that the first 35 minutes of the game were the best of the entire season, and some experts even thought it was the best the team had ever played under the Dutchman, undermined only by the double goals that Liverpool punched through just before half-time.

Still, the late rally and the last-minute parity from Ten Hag’s pick, Antony, all adds up to a special day for the manager as he was able to prove all of the progress he had been talking about.

Ten Hag May Have Earned His Spot

Beyond this year-defining win, there’s plenty of reason for Ten Hag to feel confident over the last few weeks of the season. Not only is the FA Cup still well within reach, but so too might be the Champions League qualification.

All in all, it seems like Ten Hag is in a great position to continue impressing Ratcliffe, whose reputation for playing talented youth works in his favour. Many of United’s young players idolise their manager and truly enjoy playing for him, and that is a factor that will benefit the Dutchman.

Amad Diallo, Alejandro Garnacho, Kobbie Mainoo, and Rasmus Hojlund have all performed powerfully this past season, and all are young players who have risen the ranks under Ten Hag. In fact, it was Diallo who scored the winning goal for the team in the final minute of extra time to secure the club’s spot in the final four.

How Man Utd’s Future Looks

Just moments from exiting the season empty-handed, United are now 9/4 favourites to win the FA Cup. Looking at an example site, such as the one featured in this GoldenBet betting site review, it’s plain to see what to anticipate as the season comes to its close soon. Here’s a breakdown:

Next, United will face Coventry in the semi-finals at Wembley Stadium whilst City takes on Chelsea for their round. Ten Hag will undoubtedly be working hard even while running on the confident high of his last game, so we would expect to see quite a few more intense matches over the next few weeks.