While Erik ten Hag still clings to his job as Man United manager, his predecessor Alex Ferguson has been released from the club in a cost-cutting exercise.
Ferguson retired from his position as Man United manager at the end of the 2012/13 season, but has remained on their books ever since.
That saw him take up a dual role as global ambassador and club director, but those ambassadorial duties will now end as new part-owners INEOS have terminated his contract.
According to The Athletic, Ferguson was being paid a “multi-million” annual contract in his post-career job, with payments totalling over £20 million since he retired.
But with INEOS “exhausting all avenues to reduce costs,” they have made the “amicable” decision to part ways with the club’s most legendary figure.
Ferguson will retain a “largely ceremonial” position as non-executive director, meaning he is still welcome to attend matches home and away as he has continued to do over the past decade.
It is a landmark decision at Old Trafford and comes before any call is made on the future of Ferguson’s latest successor, Ten Hag.
Ten Hag went into the international break on the back of a run of five games without a win, with only three victories in 11 games so far this season.
Those came against Fulham (1-0) and Southampton (3-0) in the Premier League and League One side Barnsley (7-0) in the Carabao Cup.
Man United have suffered losses to Brighton (2-1), Liverpool (3-0) and Tottenham (3-0), along with draws with Crystal Palace (0-0) and Aston Villa (0-0) in the league plus FC Twente (1-1) and Porto (3-3) in the Europa League.
Ten Hag’s side are currently 14th in the league, and though INEOS are undoubtedly disappointed with his performance he appears to have come away unscathed from a meeting with the owners last week.
Ferguson faced Liverpool 63 times as Man United manager, with 30 wins, 14 draws and 19 defeats in that time.
