Comparing Ten Hag’s PL record after 50 games to Ferguson, Klopp, Pep & Arteta

Erik ten Hag has been under pressure following Manchester United's slow start to the 2023-24 campaign – but his record is much more favourable if you take a step back and look at the bigger picture.

The Dutch tactician enjoyed an excellent first season in charge of the Red Devils, ending a six-year trophy drought by leading them to the League Cup. They also reached the FA Cup final and got back into the top four after a Premier League campaign that was much-improved on the year before.

Results and performances have left a lot to be desired in 2023-24 so far – particularly in the cup competitions – but Ten Hag has alleviated the pressure somewhat by leading to United to hard-fought 1-0 Premier League wins over Fulham and Luton, keeping them well within reach of the top four.

He's now taken charge of 50 Premier League games – and his record compares very favourably to the starts made by some of the most highly-regarded coaches around.

Incredibly, Man United have won as many (30) of Ten Hag's first 50 Premier League games as they did during the legendary reign of Sir Alex Ferguson – when they won the inaugural Premier League season (1992-93) and retained it the following year.

That's on something of a technicality, admittedly, because Ferguson had already taken charge of over 200 league matches and had yet to deliver the title when the English top flight was rebranded to the Premier League in 1992.

We've also taken a look at how Ten Hag's start at Old Trafford compares to three of his major rivals, who are widely regarded as the best coaches in England at present – Pep Guardiola at Manchester City, Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool and Mikel Arteta at Arsenal.

Guardiola took considerably more points in his first 50 matches, but that was largely thanks to the stark difference in the start that City made in the second season – 2017-18 – whereby they won 11 of their opening 12 matches en route to a record 100 points. Like Ten Hag, Guardiola finished 3rd in his first season – and City only picked up three more points than United did in 2022-23.

Ten Hag has a marginally better record than Klopp after his first 50 Premier League matches, albeit quite the same eye-catching attacking output, and a considerably better record than Arteta.

Here's how Ten Hag's record after 50 Premier League games compares to Ferguson, Klopp, Guardiola and Arteta.

Erik ten Hag

Wins: 30

Draws: 6

Losses: 14

Goals Scored: 71

Goals Conceded: 59

Clean Sheets: 21

Sir Alex Ferguson

Wins: 30

Draws: 13

Losses: 7

Points: 103

Goals Scored: 82

Goals Conceded: 35

Clean Sheets: 23

Jurgen Klopp

Wins: 26

Draws: 14

Losses: 10

Goals Scored: 103

Goals Conceded: 63

Clean Sheets: 14

Pep Guardiola

Wins: 34

Draws: 10

Losses: 6

Points: 112

Goals Scored: 119

Goals Conceded: 46

Clean Sheets: 19

READ: Comparing Guardiola's trophy haul at Man City to Ferguson's at Man Utd

Mikel Arteta

Wins: 21

Draws: 12

Losses: 17

Goals Scored: 72

Goals Conceded: 56

Clean Sheets: 15