MU came to Villa Park hoping to end the winless streak, but in the end only achieved a goalless draw in the West Midlands. The poor performance could not ease the pressure on Ten Hag. And fans noticed an uncomfortable moment between Ten Hag and Van Nistelrooy. Sky Sports cameras recorded the Dutch duo having a tense conversation in the technical cabin.

They both looked unhappy by their body language. Although it was difficult to lip-read what was being said, it could be seen that the Dutch duo were not on the same page. This has been hotly discussed on social networks: “Erik ten Hag and Ruud van Nistelrooy seem to disagree on the bench.” “Ruud Van Nistelrooy and Erik ten Hag are fighting on the bench like Harry Potter and Voldemort”.

“A lively conversation between Erik ten Hag and Ruud van Nistelrooy was probably the highlight of this match.” Van Nistelrooy, who scored 150 goals for MU, returned to Old Trafford last summer to become Ten Hag’s assistant. MU is experiencing the worst start in Premier League history after only winning 8 points from 7 matches.

This has led to speculation that Ten Hag may be fired. One of the potential candidates for the position of interim coach is Van Nistelrooy. A source in the Netherlands said: “Van Nistelrooy is a man of principle. He feels betrayed in Eindhoven – and he would not want to be seen as behind Erik ten Hag.”