Erik ten Hag pictured boarding private jet back to the Netherlands

Erik ten Hag was spotted boarding a private jet flight back to the Netherlands just hours after his Manchester United sacking.

The Dutchman was dismissed by United chiefs on Monday morning after he was summoned to a morning meeting at Carrington and informed his time as boss was over.

The decision to axe the Dutchman after two-and-a-half years in charge came following Sunday's defeat at West Ham which left United in 14th place in the Premier League.

And the 54-year-old made a swift exit from Manchester after being spotted being picked up by a chauffeur and taken to Manchester Airport before he boarded a flight headed to Amsterdam.

The flight had initially been scheduled to leave at 2pm however Ten Hag was hit with yet another obstacle as his departure time got delayed until 4:14pm, as per FlightRadar.

Just before heading onto the plane, Ten Hag was seen embracing a member of staff as he closed the chapter on the most testing periods of his career. 

Mail Sport understands that, in a summit described as respectful and dignified, Ten Hag was told he had been dismissed by CEO Omar Berrada and sporting director Dan Ashworth on Monday morning.

Ten Hag's No 2 Ruud van Nistelrooy - who arrived in the summer - will step in on an interim basis while the club look for a permanent replacement. 

Former Barcelona boss Xavi Hernandez, Brentford manager Thomas Frank, Sporting Lisbon coach Ruben Amorim and ex-Borussia Dortmund boss Edin Terzic are believed to have been sounded out.

Ten Hag was in the dark over his fate until Monday morning, when he was called to meet with CEO Omar Berrada and sporting director Dan Ashworth. Sources say the meeting with 'respectful and dignified'.

Ten Hag's car had been spotted at his home today before his exit. He had recorded a final press conference after Sunday's game at West Ham, ahead of Man United's Carabao Cup tie against Leicester City on Wednesday - but this will now not be broadcast. Van Nistelrooy is not expected to speak until after the Leicester game.

A club statement issued at 11.50am on Monday read: 'Erik ten Hag has left his role as Manchester United men's first-team manager. 

'Erik was appointed in April 2022 and led the club to two domestic trophies, winning the Carabao Cup in 2023 and the FA Cup in 2024.

'We are grateful to Erik for everything he has done during his time with us and wish him well for the future.

'Ruud van Nistelrooy will take charge of the team as interim head coach, supported by the current coaching team, whilst a permanent head coach is recruited.'

It's understood that the decision by United's leadership team was collective and unanimous, even though sources say it was 'a difficult and finely balanced' one.

Despite winning the Carabao Cup and FA Cup in his two seasons at Old Trafford, Ten Hag finished eighth in the Premier League last term with a negative goal difference.

He was given the chance to work within a new structure after Omar Berrada was appointed as chief executive in the summer alongside new sporting director Dan Ashworth and technical director Jason Wilcox.

His backroom staff was also overhauled with Van Nistelrooy and Rene Hake coming in as his assistants to replace Steve McClaren and Mitchell van der Gaag.

However, results and performances did not improve as United won just three of their opening nine Premier League fixtures and also dropped to 21st in the Europa League without a victory in three games.

It's believed that the United hierarchy wanted continuity after the period of change but did not see enough evidence of momentum or progress to convince them the team was on the right path.

The club believe they gave Ten Hag all the tools to succeed and sources say there were 'no excuses' for the poor start to the season that heaped more pressure on the 54-year-old Dutchman after he was given a reprieve after winning the FA Cup final in May.

Ten Hagis set to pocket a significant compensation package of up to £15million after being axed by Ratcliffe and Ineos.

Thomas Tuchel, who United considered in the summer before sticking by Ten Hag, has since been named Gareth Southgate's successor by the Football Association and will take charge of England from January. 

Sunday's 2-1 defeat against West Ham proved the final straw for Manchester United's chiefs, with the club now three wins, two draws and four losses from their opening nine games of the season.

Casemiro thought he had at least rescued a point at the London Stadium when he equalised in the 81st minute to cancel out Crysencio Summerville's strike, but Jarrod Bowen's controversial stoppage-time penalty consigned Ten Hag to yet another disappointing defeat.

Significant pressure had mounted on Ten Hag ahead of the second international break of the season in October, prompting United to hold an executive meeting in London, led by Ratcliffe.

The senior leadership team opted to stick by the Dutchman, while also choosing to 'sack' legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson from his £2.61million ambassadorial role at the club.

Ten Hag joined the club in the summer of 2022 and has won two trophies at Old Trafford — the Carabao Cup during his debut season and FA Cup at the close of last campaign.

However, United's league form worsened significantly over the course of Ten Hag's reign, with the club finishing eighth last season and currently languishing in the bottom half of the table so far this term.

Ten Hag had kept his job at the end of last season thanks to their FA Cup final win over Manchester City, despite leading the club to their lowest finish in the Premier League era and being knocked out of the group stage in the Champions League.

Ten Hag's response to the latest speculation over his future had been to dismiss it as outside noise.

'We are all on one page in this club,' he said last week. 'I told this before the break, several journalists probably didn't believe me because I see the reports. Internal in the club, it's quiet. 

'Of course, we are unhappy in the position where we are in and we have to turn the corner with a strategy to turn this corner. 

'But ultimately we are quiet, we are composed, we stay where we are, we stick to the plan and we are convinced we will make it a success.

'(I've had) no assurances about my position. Noise is only coming from some of you (media), creating stories and fairytales, bringing lies. 

'We stick to the plan and are very convinced it will be a success.'

Ratcliffe had been non-committal over Ten Hag's future in early October, insisting he did not have the final say over the Dutchman's fate.

'I don't want to answer that question,' he told the BBC when asked if he had faith in the manager. 

'I like Erik. I think he's a very good coach but at the end of the day it's not my call, it's the management team that's running Manchester United that have to decide how we best run the team in many different respects.'

'That team that's running Manchester United has only been together since June or July. They weren't there in January, February, March or April – [CEO] Omar [Berrada], [Sporting Director] Dan Ashworth - they only arrived in July.

'They've only been there… you can count it in weeks almost - they've not been there a long time so they need to take stock and make some sensible decisions. 

'Our objective is very clear - we want to take Manchester United back to where it should be, and it's not there yet, obviously - that's very clear.'

Prior to Sunday's defeat by West Ham, Manchester United were held to a 1-1 draw against Jose Mourinho's Fenerbahce in the Europa League.

Alejandro Garnacho and Rasmus Hojlund had inspired the Red Devils to a comeback victory over Brentford the weekend before, but the draw in Turkey hindered United from building momentum and subsequently led to the decisive defeat at West Ham.

United will be eager to find the right appointment to succeed Ten Hag after failing to win the Premier League title over the last 11 years. 

Ten Hag joins David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick as managers who have failed to restore Manchester United to their trophy-laden years under Sir Alex Ferguson.

He leaves behind him a host of new signings, with United recruiting Joshua Zirkzee, Matthijs de Ligt, Leny Yoro, Noussair Mazraoui and Manuel Ugarte over the summer window.