Man Utd followers and Ruben Amorim ought to thank Erik ten Hag – it is most damning reality of all

Manchester United have little to thank Erik ten Hag for.

The Dutchman took the fallen Premier League giants backwards, made some shocking signings, and cost the club a fortune in wasted millions.

Admittedly, he did lift both the Carabao Cup and FA Cup, the latter against local rivals Manchester City, in a moment at Wembley last May that United fans will always cherish.

But one look at the Premier League table suggests there might just be one other thing that Ten Hag managed this season, to earn United’s gratitude.

Before heading back to Holland in October with his P45 and around £12m in compensation in his back pocket, the former Ajax boss had managed to win three league games.

That’s just one fewer than his successor Ruben Amorim has managed in 13 league matches, since the Portuguese coach took charge in November and tried to turn around a sinking ship.

And those nine points now look crucial to United’s increasingly perilous cause, with the Red Devils slumped in 13th after their latest dismal defeat against Crystal Palace at Old Trafford on Sunday.

Because without them, United would have just 20 points – and be only three above Leicester City in the relegation zone.

So if United do go on to beat the drop this season, and on current evidence nothing is guaranteed, Ten Hag will have played some part in it.

Which might just be the most damning fact of all currently swirling around a club which continues to lurch from one humiliation to another.