Erik ten Hag - Manchester United manager

AngeloHenriquez

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I mean it's very clear keeping ETH wasn't their desire.

RDZ turning us down to go to Marseille? Yeah okay sure...
I think takes like this stink too much of reading into every article. They didn't chose ETH so they chose to take the time to review everybody's opinion of him within the club, analyze the problems and pro's associated with his employment and then interview others to benchmark him against. All we know is that given all of this they felt most positive that the correct solution was to stay with him and commit to him which leads to 1 of 2 things, the alternatives weren't as good (Or worth the money) or there are bigger problems behind the scenes he has been working with and they don't believe another manager can come in and immediately do better.
 

Iker Quesadillas

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You are never going to find another Ferguson, he's a once in a lifetime manager. No amount of time will transform just any manager into one of the best ever.

Wenger and Pep both won the title in their second seasons in England I believe. Klopp and Simone both won European trophies within 2-3 years.
Most of these managers don't reach those heights again either. Klopp hasn't won league or CL for Liverpool in 4 seasons. Wenger didn't win the league in over a decade.

Simeone's first years were his best, winning 3 titles from 2011 to 2014. He's won 2 titles in the following decade.
 

stevoc

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Fair enough but also, I think everyone on here would agree, if a manager like Pep / Klopp was available, we would all be on board sacking Ten Hag for them.

There are barely any managers with that pedigree available at the moment.
Fair, I don't think there are any managers of that calibre outside of those two bar Carlo. We need to now hope Ten Hag can get to that level or start scouting now for the next Pep or Klopp to hire in a couple of years as a back-up.

And Klopp as good as he is, I don't think was a sure thing for Liverpool circa 2015. There was no guarantee he would do what he ended up doing at Liverpool when they appointed him.
 

stevoc

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Most of these managers don't reach those heights again either. Klopp hasn't won league or CL for Liverpool in 4 seasons. Wenger didn't win the league in over a decade.

Simeone's first years were his best, winning 3 titles from 2011 to 2014. He's won 2 titles in the following decade.
Very true indeed. It's why I think Ferguson was the best and why I rate Ancelotti so highly. Both adapted to the game as time moved on and found ways to continue to be successful. As you say most managers hit a successful peak at a club and then struggle to maintain or replicate it.

It's the main reason I'm delighted United are moving to a proper footballing structure and not trying to find another Ferguson.
 

Tom Van Persie

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The Athletic's reporting on the Tuchel and De Zerbi talks suggested it was more United that pulled the plug and backed out.
 

romufc

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Fair, I don't think there are any managers of that calibre outside of those two bar Carlo. We need to now hope Ten Hag can get to that level or start scouting now for the next Pep or Klopp to hire in a couple of years as a back-up.

And Klopp as good as he is, I don't think was a sure thing for Liverpool circa 2015. There was no guarantee he would do what he ended up doing at Liverpool when they appointed him.
He wasn't a sure thing, I agree but he was someone with a good pedigree. I mean I have seen fans on here crying for Poch and Di Zerbi who have achieved nothing really.

Klopp had shown he took Mainz to a different level, he took 13th place Dortmund and built them, 3 years later with 2 titles in a row against Bayern Munich, followed by 2 second place finishes, CL final and won the German cup v Bayern.

Not like Poch, finishing 2nd or CL final, he had shown he can make a team play good football and win.

The reason why Alonso is that highly rated too, he has broken the mould in Germany by winning the league from Bayern's domination.
 

George The Best

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Aye, that's the risk I mentioned.
Unless they can negotiate a better exit clause - along the lines of ‘the remainder of your contractual period or 1 year max
Fair enough but also, I think everyone on here would agree, if a manager like Pep / Klopp was available, we would all be on board sacking Ten Hag for them.

There are barely any managers with that pedigree available at the moment.
And who will the next one be? Pep or Klopp will never come here, most of the big European clubs are going to be in the same position trying to find the next ‘Super Coach’ fairly soon. Alonso needs to do it again to prove it wasn’t a Ranieri season. Tuchel was, imo, a short step behind the top tier - but at some point lots of teams are going to have to take a gamble.
 
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romufc

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Unless they can negotiate a better exit clause - along the lines of ‘the remainder of your contractual period or 1

And who will the next one be? Pep or Klopp will never come here, most of the big European clubs are going to be in the same position trying to find the next ‘Super Coach’ fairly soon. Alonso needs to do it again to prove it wasn’t a Ranieri season. Tuchel was, imo, a short step behind the top tier - but at some point lots of teams are going to have to take a gamble.
This is why we have installed a footballing structure being paid millions to go find the right person? Pep and Klopp are not an option, we have to find another one.

Alonso will need to show that it wasn't a one off, sure, he also needs to show he can compete in the CL, next season is very important for hi,.

Well they are taking a gamble, Arsenal gambled on Arteta, Chelsea on Enzo, Bayern on Kompany.. our footballing people need to find a manager to gamble on.

For me Poch, Di Zerbi are not really gambles because they have been around a while and haven't done anything of note.
 

saik

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I doubt this is true, it shows INEOS dixnt really want to keep Erik though if it is

Do people really believe this? Man I should pay for that blue tick and start spouting shit like that guy. Eventually some of it will stick with so many gullible people. :lol:
 

Smores

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It's very obvious Tuchel and maybe RdZ turned Ineos down for reasons other than money. And ETH was the fall back, not the first choice or probably even the second.

Probably doubting their planned structure/confidence in what was pitched to them/ they'd have anything like the recruitment needed.
Tuchel I can believe but RDZ would have jumped at the chance.

I think it's more likely we simply backed out of prior decisions post FA cup. The rest was just managing the optics.
 

hobbers

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Tuchel I can believe but RDZ would have jumped at the chance.

I think it's more likely we simply backed out of prior decisions post FA cup. The rest was just managing the optics.
I dunno I'd say RdZ is even more likely than Tuchel to not accept a situation where he's judged as a manager but has reduced control.

Especially when the guy supposed to be in control of squad building isn't in position yet and might not be for a full fecking year yet. I think that plus the complexities of the United job plus the scrutiny would put loads of managers off. And I bet it put McKenna off along with Tuchel and RdZ.

Yeah managers rarely seem to turn down Chelsea but at Chelsea they were promised blank cheques and control. Up until now, and suddenly they can only get Maresca from the Championship who's CV is Parma and Leicester.
 

Rista

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FFS, really?
What part you disagree with? Domestic cups are a nice bonus, they are not a measure of where you are as a team. Playing cohesive football, not getting outrun in midfield in every game would be a far more positive look for the future than winning a cup competition. Even if you finish 4th or 5th. Domestic cups don't really come into picture when it comes to us being back as legitimate challengers.
 

Smores

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I dunno I'd say RdZ is even more likely than Tuchel to not accept a situation where he's judged as a manager but has reduced control.

Especially when the guy supposed to be in control of squad building isn't in position yet and might not be a full fecking year. I think that plus the complexities of the United job plus the scrutiny would put loads of managers off. And I bet it put McKenna off along with Tuchel and RdZ.
You could well be right, no one thought Bayern would have to resort to Kompany but that happened so feck knows.

Oddly though I think it's valid to say we're both a risk to managers whilst at the same time allowing them ridiculous support and funds. 400 million to finish 8th isn't exactly a high hurdle.
 

Blood Mage

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I doubt this is true, it shows INEOS dixnt really want to keep Erik though if it is

Shows that keeping Erik was a last resort and that Ineos want to run the club like a dictatorship with the manager being a yes man essentially, which has no doubt put coaches like Tuchel and De Zerbi off.
 

hobbers

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Shows that keeping Erik was a last resort and that Ineos want to run the club like a dictatorship with the manager being a yes man essentially, which has no doubt put coaches like Tuchel and De Zerbi off.
And once again points us to the only manager who would happily let his pal Ashworth control the squad for him.
 

Rolaholic

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I think our entire midfield mess would have been prevented by just signing De Jong when ETH requested him. Instead we spent millions on Casemiro and Mount, both of whom don't look like they are going to have much of a role going forward for different reasons (Casemiro's decline, Mount's positional fit).
You think the club didn't try? They wasted all summer chasing him after we kept hearing again and again he didn't want to leave Barcelona.

2 years later and he's still there, often these things come down to player choice. Without that you can't sign players no matter how much a manager might want too.

LvG also demanded that we sign Muller and Kroos, would that have helped us a lot? Sure as hell it would have but that wasn't possible.

The club has proven again and again that they'll back the manager in the market, whenever feasible, almost to a fault over the years. I don't think that's a fair criticism to make with that in mind.

It's still up to the manager at the end of the day to make things work with the tools he has at his disposal. Much less heralded and expensive midfields in the league ran circles around us last season, often under managers with even less experience at their clubs. That isn't acceptable no matter whether we missed out on a golden goose or not.
 

the_cliff

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The only way I'd see Tuchel and De Zerbi rejecting us is if they've been told this summer we're not going to spend.
 

Rolaholic

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The only way I'd see Tuchel and De Zerbi rejecting us is if they've been told this summer we're not going to spend.
That's what the reports mention as a point of contention for purported candidates, that we'll be a bit skint this summer until we get the outgoings started
 

the_cliff

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That's what the reports mention as a point of contention for purported candidates, that we'll be a bit skint this summer until we get the outgoings started
I guess we'll see soon enough if that's true or not. If we haven't done any business till August I'd believe that.
 

lex talionis

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Given the alternatives available to United right now, keeping ETH was a sensible decision. Who knows what the conditions of the new contract will be, but I suspect INEOS will significantly restrain ETH's authority over transfers, which has been by far the strongest argument against ETH during his tenure at Old Trafford. The 200m we spent on Antony, Mount and Onana could and should have been allocated more intelligently, resulting in at least a real chance of securing CL qualification for 24/25.

Not to beat a dead horse, but we were actually fortunate land as high as 8th in the table. We scraped more than a few wins from matches we deserved no more than a draw...and in terms of the FA Cup, the Coventry player was not offside.
 

ForeverRed1

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What false narrative? And how is it 'mine'? I don't work for, negotiate any signings as I am sure is the case with you.

What amazes (and concerns me..) is the fact that it seems that you ignore the fact that he identified and signed and consistently picked Antony.

This is a dreadful player, has no business at Man Utd. But again, let's recall what our manager stated only a few months ago:

'..Antony, I've backed him for a long time. I know his abilities, he has great abilities. When he plays how I know from the past, he's unstoppable. No defender can stop him because he's one of the quickest players in the first 10 yards..'

So yes, give the man a new contract!

I don't care whether he decides the final price. The point is this was (another) ETH marquee signing.

But let's ignore that. We won the FA Cup. And we beat City.

City, Arsenal, Liverpool barely find us of relevance. And can you blame them? We are now a club that debates whether to keep Erik Ten Hag, or wait for Gareth Southgate.

Some may find all of that acceptable, but I do not. All.about opinions.
Okay. We’re on different sides of the fanbase and that’s ok. :)
 

Sandikan

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It's very obvious Tuchel and maybe RdZ turned Ineos down for reasons other than money. And ETH was the fall back, not the first choice or probably even the second.

Probably doubting their planned structure/confidence in what was pitched to them/ they'd have anything like the recruitment needed.
How can you assert something is "obvious" and then put a "maybe" in there?
 

Sandikan

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Plenty of questions around this.

For those adamant staying was right would you take us finishing say 12th and winning a cup and keeping him next summer?

A few years ago missing top 4 was a guarantee of the sack, with or without a cup. Now 8th keeps you there.

Yes injuries etc etc but what if we have injuries to the likes of Bruno, Garnacho and Hojlund next year? Is 12th or 13th OK? How far do you make this allowance?

Or is it solely about who is available? Even though there only seem to be about 3 names everyone thinks is a guarantee of success, with 2 being impossibilities due to being links with rivals and one being an aging Italian who barely did much with Everton?

I'm not gutted we've kept him by the way, just interested in the above.
 

Frank Grimes

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Plenty of questions around this.

For those adamant staying was right would you take us finishing say 12th and winning a cup and keeping him next summer?

A few years ago missing top 4 was a guarantee of the sack, with or without a cup. Now 8th keeps you there.

Yes injuries etc etc but what if we have injuries to the likes of Bruno, Garnacho and Hojlund next year? Is 12th or 13th OK? How far do you make this allowance?

Or is it solely about who is available? Even though there only seem to be about 3 names everyone thinks is a guarantee of success, with 2 being impossibilities due to being links with rivals and one being an aging Italian who barely did much with Everton?

I'm not gutted we've kept him by the way, just interested in the above.
You sound gutted.
 

stevoc

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He wasn't a sure thing, I agree but he was someone with a good pedigree. I mean I have seen fans on here crying for Poch and Di Zerbi who have achieved nothing really.

Klopp had shown he took Mainz to a different level, he took 13th place Dortmund and built them, 3 years later with 2 titles in a row against Bayern Munich, followed by 2 second place finishes, CL final and won the German cup v Bayern.

Not like Poch, finishing 2nd or CL final, he had shown he can make a team play good football and win.

The reason why Alonso is that highly rated too, he has broken the mould in Germany by winning the league from Bayern's domination.
Not a fan of Pochettino myself, didn't want him here 2 years ago and still don't.
 

stevoc

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That's what the reports mention as a point of contention for purported candidates, that we'll be a bit skint this summer until we get the outgoings started
Reports have said that pretty much every summer for the last 3-4 years. Then we end up spending £150-250m.
 

RedOrange

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He doesn’t pay for players. There’s people who do that that can happily tell him no. That’s beyond our budget. Surely?
There were a number of executives who had input into the transfer strategy under the Glazers and the chief one lasted for 10 years and 4 managers despite awful performance. The reason they managed to do that was because they were very adept at blaming the manager for all of the bad transfers. The manager doesn't negotiate the fee or the player's wages, so if you go and get his preferred targets for really stupid prices you can shift 100% of the blame to him if they don't pan out. Sure, the results will be awful, but you get to keep your job, which is all you care about because you're a scum sucking investment banker and the salary and bonuses are excellent because the club remains a commercial juggernaut.
 

croadyman

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That's what the reports mention as a point of contention for purported candidates, that we'll be a bit skint this summer until we get the outgoings started
A bit skint, jeez we are truly paying a heavy price for spending around £150m on Casemiro and Antony
 

RedRocket9908

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Plenty of questions around this.

For those adamant staying was right would you take us finishing say 12th and winning a cup and keeping him next summer?

A few years ago missing top 4 was a guarantee of the sack, with or without a cup. Now 8th keeps you there.

Yes injuries etc etc but what if we have injuries to the likes of Bruno, Garnacho and Hojlund next year? Is 12th or 13th OK? How far do you make this allowance?

Or is it solely about who is available? Even though there only seem to be about 3 names everyone thinks is a guarantee of success, with 2 being impossibilities due to being links with rivals and one being an aging Italian who barely did much with Everton?

I'm not gutted we've kept him by the way, just interested in the above.
Its quite clear from all the reports voming out about other managers turning us down that we've only kept him as none of the available replacements wanted the job.

The only thing we can do now is get behind the team and hope he doesnt continues with his useless tactics tgat see us conceed 20-30 shots per game, I cant see Erik being heavilly backed in the transfer window if they dont really want him as manager so he has a tough job ahead of him.