Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand likened Erik ten Hag’s reign to a boxer getting “knocked down” and “never recovering”.
Ten Hag was sacked as United first-team manager on Monday following a disappointing start to the season.
They slipped into 14th in the Premier League table following their fourth league defeat of the season, by West Ham on Sunday.
Speculation had mounted over the Dutchman’s position in recent weeks and Ferdinand admitted he was unsurprised to see him go.
Speaking live on his YouTube channel while on holiday in the Maldives, Ferdinand said: “Am I surprised? No.
“They kept the man in charge, season kicks in, I actually thought we were starting to see some new signs in the first two or three games, and then we get beat by Liverpool and never recovered.
“It was like a boxer getting hit and knocked down in the third round and never recovering and getting knocked out, knocked down, every single round on the way to the 12th round.
“And finally, we’re here. The fight’s been called off in the last round for the manager, and I think now we’re going to go for a new direction.”
Ferdinand wondered if new owners Ineos deliberately planned for his former team-mate Ruud Van Nistelrooy, who will take interim charge, to be a ready-made back-up plan.
Van Nistelrooy and fellow assistant Rene Hake both left roles as first-team head coaches in the Eredivisie, with PSV Eindhoven and Go Ahead Eagles respectively, before joining Ten Hag at Old Trafford before the start of the season.
Ferdinand added: “I think we’ll see the method behind the madness in the coming weeks because if the two coaches, Ruud van Nistelrooy and his partner, stayed there, then I think this was done with the long-term thinking that this might happen.
“But one win in eight games for Ten Hag isn’t great, and I don’t think he or anybody else is surprised with this.
“My big thing is taking so long. One of the main best candidates that was sitting out there was probably Thomas Tuchel, but he’s gone now, he’s become England manager.
“England will be delighted with that, but I think Man United will be looking at that saying ‘Maybe, is that one that got away?’”
Ferdinand backed Van Nistelrooy to take a stern approach in his caretaker role.
He said: “I think Ruud being asked to take on the interim role, this is a dream case scenario. This has played out the best way.
“Ruud won’t tell us this. He won’t say that, but this has played out the best way possible for him. He comes in, in the background, denying any kind of knowledge of wanting to be the manager, any desire to be the manager, thinking, ‘if this guy lets up, if he doesn’t produce, I’m sitting in the wings waiting to take over’.
“There’s a calming authority he’s got. I’ve seen him in the camp. The players like him, they respect him, I’ve spoken with a number of the players and they’ve loved working with him so far.”
Former United captain Gary Neville believes Ten Hag paid the price for an “unacceptable” Premier League position.
United dropped into the bottom half of the table following the defeat to West Ham, where Jarrod Bowen’s stoppage-time penalty snatched three points for the Hammers.
Neville told Sky Sports: “The big shock for me is how bad they’ve been with the new signings that have come in.
“I felt as though they would have enough to be able to get a decent level of performance together after a smoother transfer window, and that Erik ten Hag would get a level of stability.
“The fact that they are 14th is unacceptable. You can’t be in 14th after nine or 10 games with the level of spend that’s occurred without being under significant pressure – and that’s what’s happened.
“I was hoping it would end differently. I think Manchester United fans were hoping that the manager would continue to keep his job and the faith shown in him in the summer would pay off. But it’s not been the case.”
United captain Bruno Fernandes thanked Ten Hag for the “trust” the Dutchman had shown him at Old Trafford and the moments they shared together.
In a post on Instagram showing Fernandes lifting the FA Cup with Ten Hag, the skipper said: “Thanks for everything boss.
“I appreciate the trust and the moments we share together, I wish you all the best in the future.
“Even knowing the last period hasn’t been great from all of us I hope you fans can keep with you the good things the manager has done for our club!”