Erik ten Hag stood stoically in the technical area at Wembley, the trousers of his Cup final suit riding up to reveal milky white ankles. Socked in the morning?
Another Dutchman who led United into an FA Cup final with his neck in a noose knows exactly how this feels.
Louis van Gaal was stood in Ten Hag’s shoes eight years ago in 2016. Van Gaal won that day too, beating Crystal Palace, and picked up the Cup shortly before his P45.
He believed the promises made to him by the United hierarchy, even when his wife Truus warned him that former United chief Ed Woodward was sharpening the axe.