Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has lifted the lid on the conversations he has held with his players as he seeks an immediate reaction from the Tottenham defeat, while also hinting at what sporting director Dan Ashworth has told him amid claims he faces the sack.
The Red Devils have started the season in alarming fashion and Sunday’s comprehensive home defeat to Spurs means they have already lost three of their Premier League games to sit a worrying 13th in the table. As a result, Ten Hag found himself under mounting pressure of the Manchester United sack and amid strong suggestions across multiple sources that he has just two games to save himself.
Matches away to FC Porto in the Europa League and a buzzing Aston Villa in the Premier League – the latter fresh from their incredible UCL victory over Bayern Munich on Wednesday – will not be easy.
Yet a determined Ten Hag is determined to dig his feels in and has demanded his players show their anger in reaction to Sunday’s loss.
“Always when we are not winning we are very disappointed,” Ten Hag told reporters on Wednesday evening.
“We are also mad, mad with ourselves, especially when you lose a game like Sunday. Also, after all that, we had to play so long with ten players and then the red card was overturned – that gives frustration. But you have to deal with it.
“We are mad and now from the madness, we have to get motivation and we go into the next game.”
While Ten Hag has borne the brunt of the criticism, he insists his entire squad has a role to play in turning the form around.
“Everyone has to take responsibility and that starts with me as the manager,” he added. “But, of course, there are senior players but also others with leadership skills and they have to stand up.
“Every game for us is important and every opponent is always 100 per cent motivated so we have to be ready as a team and as individuals to compete and fight with them.”
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Despite Ten Hag’s apparent war cry, sources told TEAMtalk last week that the United sack is now ‘just a matter of time’ with the club already sounding out several potential options.
On Wednesday, our correspondent Fraser Gillan claims minority shareholder Sir Jim Ratcliffe and sporting director Ashworth have a ‘best of British’ demand when it comes to their next manager and with three leading contenders shortlisted for the role.
And asked if he had spoken to Ashworth about his future about the club’s disappointing start to the season, Ten Hag insisted: “It’s not necessary to give me confidence.
“We talk every day about how we can improve this club, this team, improve the processes, the procedures, the connections.
“That is what we talk about.”
Pressed again on his future, Ten Hag is adamant that assurances given to him over his future gives him a belief he will be allowed to see the job through.
“We talk every day.
“We are in a union and we made that agreement in the summer. We had a discussion, we had a review and we made our decisions.
“We refreshed and we reset the staff and I appointed my assistants, I appointed the staff. It was, of course, in a common process but I did this and we refreshed the squad as well.”
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Despite Ten Hag’s apparent confidence – and time will tell if that is misplaced or not – speculation over who might replace him has reached fever pitch in the last few days.
The apparent favourite to come in, initially temporarily, is his assistant manager Ruud van Nistelrooy, who has been described by one former club scout as a ‘brilliant fit’ for the job.
Paul Scholes, meanwhile, has hit out Ten Hag over two of his signings, suggesting Van Nistelrooy would not have signed either had he consulted with him.
Another man strongly linked with the role is Gareth Southgate, but Gary Neville has expressed his strong opinions on why appointing the former England boss would not end well.
Meanwhile, United are also being linked with a move for an elite Italian coach. Were United to land him, the Serie A giants are reported to have already targeted Liverpool legend Jurgen Klopp as their No 1 pick to succeed him.
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Erik ten Hag record at Man Utd – correct to September 2024
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