Rio Ferdinand rages at 's***' Man Utd players in astonishing rant after Dan Ashworth sacking

Rio Ferdinand ranted at Manchester United’s players following Sporting Director Dan Ashworth leaving the club after just five months in the role.

Ferdinand, 46, is a United legend. During his 12-year stint at the club, he won six Premier League titles and a plethora of other crowns.

However, since his 2015 retirement, he has been a familiar face in the media and is not afraid to give his opinion on all things football.

The former defender was not best pleased with the current crop of talent at United, who were beaten 3-2 against Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford on Saturday evening.

The defeat means Ruben Amorim’s side sit 13^th in the Premier League.

Surprisingly, in the aftermath of the weekend’s fixture, United released a statement on Sunday confirming that Sporting Director Ashworth “will be leaving” the club by “mutual agreement” despite the fact they poached him from Newcastle in July 2024.

Many fans were left shocked by the news, but Ferdinand believes that harsh decisions also need to be made on the pitch to offload several squad members who aren’t performing to the level expected of a United player.

“I just hope they are this brutal with the s*** players that are there,” said Ferdinand while speaking on Rio Ferdinand Presents.

Rio Ferdinand gave his thoughts on Man Utd (Credit:Getty)

“If there’s any s*** players there – and as fans we could all name one we don’t think are good enough – if they have been there too long or are just not good enough, be as brutal with them and get them the f***out, quick, ASAP.

“I hope they are like that, but it’s different with players with the contacts and the layers. But please be as brutal, please.”

It is unclear exactly who Ferdinand is referring to in his rant, but the likes of Andre Onana, Matthijs de Ligt and Lisandro Martinez did not perform well in the defeat to Forest.

Of course, new head coach Amorim will need his side’s performances to improve quickly if he is to steer clear of criticism early into his tenure at the club.

In his first interview with the club back in November he insisted he and his players will need “time”. Next up, United will travel to the Czech Republic where they will face Viktoria Plzen on Thursday evening.