Maybe Ralf Rangnick was right, after all. Maybe Manchester United does require soccer's equivalent of 'open-heart surgery' to fix the glut of issues currently afflicting England's biggest club. That was the blunt assessment offered in April by Rangnick, United's interim manager at the time, as he prepared to hand over the coaching reins to Erik ten Hag ahead of this season. And it's taken just two painful Premier League games for Ten Hag to understand quite the mess he has joined. Underperforming and, in certain cases, unmotivated players. An imbalanced, poorly assembled squad. A faltering recruitment team unable to bring in its primary targets. American owners increasingly loathed by the fans.

Ten Hag, meanwhile, is adding to his own problems with some questionable decision-making in his first weeks in English soccer. 'Rubbish' was one of the words the Dutchman used to describe United's abysmal performance in its 4-0 loss at Brentford on Saturday that marked a new low point in the club's recent history. Moments after the final whistle at Brentford Community Stadium, as the joyous home fans celebrated one of their team's best ever results, Ten Hag was seen standing motionless on the touchline, both arms behind his back, unable to believe what had transpired.