Sir Jim Ratcliffe is alleged to have approached Graham Potter about succeeding Erik ten Hag as manager of Manchester United, following an unsettling new story claiming the Dutchman was on borrowed time at Old Trafford.

The Red Devils are experiencing a poor season, having fallen significantly from the 2022/23 season, Ten Hag’s first as manager, when Manchester United won the Carabao Cup, reached the FA Cup final, and finished third in the Premier League.

Any expectations of closing the gap on Manchester City have been soon shattered, with the team suffering through their worst start to a season since 1930.

Indeed, their 14 defeats in 28 games have raised the pressure on Ten Hag, who is now one of the favourites to be the next Premier League manager to be fired.

While there appears to be some sympathy for Ten Hag, who has had to deal with a number of major issues behind the scenes, most notably a fall-out with £73 million star Jadon Sancho, as well as a long-running takeover saga that has yet to be officially resolved, time appears to be running out for the Dutchman.

And, after failing to elicit a response from United’s expensively created squad, speculation has grown in recent weeks, particularly in light of the club’s disastrous Champions League campaign, that Ten Hag’s career may be on the line soon.

To that end, it was recently stated that Ten Hag was ‘dying’ at Old Trafford, with several analysts questioning why the British media has aggravated his situation.

Ratcliffe is “ready to sack Ten Hag” as Manchester United’s next manager is named

According to ESPN, Ratcliffe, the prospective new investor, is seriously considering firing Ten Hag as his first important act as a leader.

According to reports, the British tycoon is sick of seeing the squad stumble from crisis to crisis this season and believes it is too late for Ten Hag to turn the tide.

And Ratcliffe may have had enough after witnessing the Red Devils’ all-too-familiar dismal performance in their final game of 2023, a 2-1 loss to Nottingham Forest at the City Ground.

Ratcliffe, who also owns Nice in France, has reportedly named former Chelsea manager Potter as his first contender to replace the Dutchman.

They claim Ratcliffe and Potter met in the summer to discuss a possible employment for the Englishman at Nice, just months after the 48-year-old was fired from Chelsea.

Potter declined the position for the time being, claiming that he was willing to wait for another opportunity to manage in the Premier League.

However, the former Brighton manager is said to have impressed Ratcliffe, and the British billionaire has now contacted him again, this time regarding the idea of taking on possibly the most important position of all, that of Manchester United manager.

Ratcliffe is prepared to take over as Manchester United manager in place of Ten Hag

During those meetings, Ratcliffe is understood to have tried to measure Potter’s desire to take on such a position, as well as how he would bring out the best in United’s underperforming players.

Of course, Ratcliffe has previously spoken with Ten Hag about United’s future plans, and it was made clear that an immediate improvement was required.

Following those negotiations, it was agreed that Ten Hag would be given until the conclusion of the season before a decision was made on his eventual departure as manager.

According to ESPN, Ratcliffe is now willing to make that decision, with an instant change of manager being seriously contemplated.

Sir Dave Brailsford, who has accepted a position as sporting director with INEOS, has also reportedly approved of a management move. The two guys have attended United’s last two games, and the loss to Forest could be the decisive factor.

Ten Hag appeared to apologize to Ratcliffe after the game for their poor performance, hinting that the number of ailments his squad was currently suffering from had an impact on the results.

“[INEOS] knows who I am, and they know that when I have a squad available, the results will be there,” Ten Hag said in a statement.

“We’ve already shown that we can compete with the best teams.” So I’m convinced and have a strong belief that we will make improvements and attain greater consistency in this team in the near future.

“This is part of a larger project.” We outperformed last year, but this year we are underperforming. We must improve, we must advance, and I must lead this process.”

Ten Hag would leave Old Trafford with 53 victories from 90 games in charge, giving him a win percentage of 58.89%.

Potter, on the other hand, had a 31.11% victory percentage at Brighton and a 38.71% success percentage at Chelsea.