Manchester United's dressing room was reportedly bugged before their game against Aston Villa, with Erik ten Hag's team talks recorded.

It is claimed by The Sun that the person in question 'hoodwinked' Villa security by gaining access to the away team dressing room to place a recording device out-of-sight of everyone. The device is believed to be a mobile phone from China which allows a recording to begin when a phone call is received. The culprit is understood to have called the device when he was aware Ten Hag was in the dressing room and even reportedly returned to Villa Park to collect the phone this week.

The incident comes in light of Ten Hag's lobbying to increase privacy measures at United's Carrington training ground by installing screens to ensure any tactical methods are not exposed to outside sources.

An unnamed source told The Sun: “This is a shocking breach of security and some serious questions will be asked as to how this was allowed to happen. Fortunately, there was nothing sinister to this incident. It was just a prankster, who’s actually a United fan, being silly and wanting to hear what was said inside those four walls. But it will definitely be a cause for concern about how they managed to get inside a changing room at one of the Premier League’s biggest clubs just days before a match.”

The incident is another unwelcome distraction for Ten Hag after United held showdown talks over his future during the international break, which has seemingly led to the Dutchman clinging onto his job for now. Ten Hag has come under pressure following United's poor start to the season and he will be hoping for some relief when his side host Brentford next weekend.