Arne Slot and Pep Guardiola have sent messages to Erik ten Hag (Pictures: Getty)

Pep Guardiola and Arne Slot have expressed sympathy for Erik ten Hag after he was sacked by Manchester United and backed the manager to land another ‘big’ job in the near future.

United finally pulled the plug Ten Hag on Monday following the Premier League club’s dismal start to the season.

Manchester United are just 14th in the Premier League after nine games and were beaten 2-1 by West Ham at the weekend.

Ex-Ajax boss Ten Hag took over in the summer of 2022 and led the club to third place in his first season.

The Dutchman also lifted two trophies during his time in charge – the Carabao Cup in 2023 and the FA Cup almost six months ago – but Manchester United finished eighth last year and looked set for another difficult campaign based on their early-season form.
Slot, who has made a superb start to his tenure as Liverpool manager, says it was ‘hard’ to hear of his compatriot’s sacking but does not expect it to end his managerial career.

?Well, he?s a Dutch manager so it makes it even harder for me and us as Dutch people,’ Slot said at a press conference on Tuesday morning.

Ten Hag was sacked after a little over two years in charge (Picture: Reuters)

‘Obviously your first thoughts are with the person, we know in this industry and in this job it can happen.

‘I know him a little bit and I know how much work he puts in, so...