Erik ten Hag issues 'common sense' plea to Man Utd owners amid mounting pressure and Gareth Southgate links

Over the past month, it has been heavily reported that Ten Hag will be let go by Man Utd at the end of the current season with new co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe looking to make positive changes to the club and the dressing room after an underwhelming campaign. The Red Devils have been heavily linked with England boss Gareth Southgate to take over the reins this summer. However, the Dutch manager believes that the ownership will spare him due to the unnatural number of injuries the club has suffered this season.

Speaking to the media, Ten Hag said: "Are the owners unhappy with me? No. The [owners] have common sense. You see when we have 32 different back lines, we've used 13 partnerships in centre half, when they see we don’t have a left back, they know that will have a negative impact on results.

"It's a huge FA Cup final. We are happy to be there. It can be a highlight for this season. We know the reasons we are underperforming is because of the injuries. No team will perform when you have so many injuries in key areas."

Ten Hag has indeed had to contend with a fair number of injuries in his squad this season, especially in defence. As per TransferMarkt, Man Utd have had 35 different injury cases in which a player has missed at least one Premier League match, the fourth most in the English top division behind Chelsea, Newcastle United and Brentford.

The Red Devils have three more Premier League matches in hand to try and make it to the Europa Conference League before they face off against Manchester City in the FA Cup final on May 25. Winning the cup could potentially save the Dutchman's job for at least another season.