Damning statistic reveals Man Utd’s decline since Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure
Manchester United’s troubles since their legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013 have been well documented over the years.
Having won an astonishing 13 Premier League titles, five FA Cups and two Champions Leagues during the Scot’s 26 years in charge, United have largely struggled to be a consistent top four team since he left the club.
After what seemed like a turning of the corner season under new manager Erik ten Hag in 2022/23, United’s struggles have returned at the start of the 2023/24 campaign.
The Red Devils suffered their fifth defeat in ten Premier League games, and seventh in all competitions, over the weekend – being beaten by inner-city rivals Manchester City 3-0 at Old Trafford.
While a damning defeat in its own right, the loss to City now means that United have now lost as many Premier League home games since Ferguson retired as they did during his 26-year stint as the club’s manager.
The 34 Premier League home defeats suffered over a ten-year span have been shared out between a plethora of permanent and interim managers. Indeed,
Having had one manager for over a quarter of a century, United have since employed eight different coaches in a ten-year span – David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ten Hag on a permanent basis, and Ryan Giggs, Michael Carrick and Ralf Rangnick as either caretaker or interim bosses.
Ten Hag suffered just one defeat at home in the Premier League during his maiden campaign as the club’s first-team manager, losing his first league game in charge back in August 2022. The Dutch manager had gone over a year without tasting defeat in the league at Old Trafford until Brighton and Hove Albion once again came to town in mid-September.
United have since gone on to lose a further two home Premier League games, to Crystal Palace and Manchester City respectively.