Sir Jim Ratcliffe takes fresh swipe at Erik ten Hag after failing to support Man Utd boss

has delivered a scathing assessment of manager current dire situation as he declared that the club "is not there yet" in his eyes.

Amidst a tumultuous period for Ten Hag's squad, Manchester United's form has plummeted, securing a mere three wins out of 10 matches across all competitions this season, with the team failing to clinch a victory in their last four outings.

Since taking the reins in June 2022, the Dutchman witnessed his side squander a two-goal advantage against Porto in the on Thursday, which also saw captain Bruno Fernandes receive his marching orders for the second time within a week.

In a nail-biting finish, emerged as the unlikely saviour, netting a last-gasp equaliser at the 91st-minute mark to salvage a 3-3 draw in Portugal. However, .

With a challenging visit to looming this Sunday, co-owner Ratcliffe is set to be present, potentially witnessing Ten Hag's final match at the helm of the Red Devils.

While currently in Barcelona observing INEOS Britannia's participation in the America's Cup, Ratcliffe was . The INEOS chairman responded: "I think I don't want to answer that. I like Erik. He's a very good coach but at the end of the day it's not my call."

He further elaborated on the decision-making process at , stating: "It's the management team that's running Manchester United that have to decide how we best run the team in many different respects. But that team that's running Manchester United has only been together since June or July."

"They weren't there in January, February, March or April [CEO] Omar [Berrada], [sporting director] Dan Ashworth - they only arrived in July. They've only been there - you can count it in weeks almost - they've not been there a long time, so they need to take stock and make some sensible decisions."

Ratcliffe's parting shot was telling though, as he made clear: "Our objective is very clear - we want to take Manchester United back to where it should be, and it's not there yet, obviously - that's very clear. There's work to be done."

After a period of contemplation and discussions with various managers at the end of the previous season, Berrada and Ashworth decided to retain Ten Hag's, subsequently activating a one-year extension clause in his contract.

This resolution was taken despite clinching the FA Cup whilst concurrently declining to eighth place in the Premier League, marking their poorest league outcome in three decades.