Man United have been handed clear deadline to decide Erik ten Hag's future

If there is to be one criticism of Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Ineos' ownership of Manchester United so far it is that big decisions have often been left too long, causing a vacuum of speculation to build.

The obvious example is deciding the future of Erik ten Hag. Twice the Dutchman has been left in limbo regarding the prospect of keeping his job.

First was in the summer when United felt as though they had all the time in the world to inform one of their most senior figureheads whether his job was safe or not. History is now repeating itself this month with a lack of formal backing of Ten Hag during the international break leading to questions of whether or not he is actually going to be at the club when the Premier League returns.

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Fortunately, some of the best businessmen work to their full potential when time is of the essence and that scenario is now pertinent for Ratcliffe. On Friday morning, following Lee Carsley's admission that he hopes to return to the England U21s, Thomas Tuchel was installed as the favourite to succeed Gareth Southgate as Three Lions head coach.

Undoubtedly, this will have come as a shock to Ineos, who at the beginning of the week were lining up the ex-Bayern Munich and Chelsea manager as a permanent replacement for Ten Hag if they chose to sack him. The leisurely pace that Ratcliffe and co. have maintained while weighing up this decision now has to come to an end if they are serious about bringing Tuchel in.

Carsley confirmed in his press conference on Thursday night that he was informed he would be in charge for England's first three camps of the season before passing on the role to a permanent replacement. We have already completed one of those and we are halfway through another.

This suggests that when the third rolls round in November, the onus will be on The FA to have chosen their successor. If United want to pip them to Tuchel, they need to work hard now to get that deal done because let's face it, the England job is a more promising prospect than the Old Trafford gig presently.

The deadline for Ineos is now set and it is vital they decide for certain whether Ten Hag is the long-term plan for this club or not.

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