I have every faith in ten Hag, but he is setting the bar quite high at the moment all things considered. Eventually our paper thin squad will bite us no matter the fixtures, which are beginning to pile up. He is brilliant, but he can only do so much with this side. Hopefully we add at least one viable option to the attack. If not I really fear for us come the business end of the season.
Erik ten Hag | 2022/23 & 2023/24
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I have every faith in ten Hag, but he is setting the bar quite high at the moment all things considered. Eventually our paper thin squad will bite us no matter the fixtures, which are beginning to pile up. He is brilliant, but he can only do so much with this side. Hopefully we add at least one viable option to the attack. If not I really fear for us come the business end of the season.
Everything will come down to injuries and fitness. Can already see how Liverpool and Chelsea are starting to fall apart from injuries.
We need a striker so badly. If Rashford gets injured who is going to score or stretch defences? Sure as feck won't be Martial.
We need a striker so badly. If Rashford gets injured who is going to score or stretch defences? Sure as feck won't be Martial.
I am more than convinced that he is the man to take us to the promise land. We have a hell of a manager. Imagine we had him to replace Sir Alex Ferguson.
They drew against City away, then lost at home to brighton 4-0 at home. Yes their team are game raisers just like West Ham used to be.
What most of you probably don’t know is that ETH schedules the season in blocks. Block 1,2,3 and 4.
At ajax, Eriks block 3 was always by far the best block. We could see sloppy games and losing points to nobodies in Block 2, in Block 3 you had a razorsharp team that would win 4-0 from PSV while it could have been 8-0. Im pretty sure we didnt lose a game in block 3 in all 3 seasons.
Erik is king Block 3, and thats where he puts the team into the position to win prizes. After that, its just quality and mentality of the players that should bring it home. I expect the same at United.
At ajax, Eriks block 3 was always by far the best block. We could see sloppy games and losing points to nobodies in Block 2, in Block 3 you had a razorsharp team that would win 4-0 from PSV while it could have been 8-0. Im pretty sure we didnt lose a game in block 3 in all 3 seasons.
Erik is king Block 3, and thats where he puts the team into the position to win prizes. After that, its just quality and mentality of the players that should bring it home. I expect the same at United.
While this sounds great, our league is very different and it might take some time to adjust and evaluate.
I very much doubt we will get a perfect 'block 3' in his first season.
I love him, average is an understatement
He gets it doesn’t he.
Aboubakar it is then!
Why would he criticise the players he is managing when they’ve been doing so well? This benefits nobody. Very poor.
Eh, it's not as if we haven't had a similar run of fixtures earlier in the season and did well. Of course I understand that doesn't mean we'll do well again in these fixtures, and sure it can all go sideways, but it won't change the stat presented in that tweet - and I think even if it all came pear shaped with the upcoming fixtures, we've seen enough to be positive/upbeat moving forward
Maybe he's referring to players who have come and gone.
Think he’s pointing at those that haven’t been involved in our starting XI, the likes of Maguire, Sancho, VdB, Fred, Lindelof, AWB etc.
And of course the players who have recently left.
This is the reason I can’t see aboubakar coming, If ETH wants Felix then it’s either him or no one. He wants quality.
No pressure at all for his own signings then..
I’m sure he’s referring to players no longer at the club. The likes of Schneiderlin, Pogba, Hererra, Mata, Bailly etc etc
Shots fired 
When was this interview done?
When was this interview done?
This man is a gift from the heavens for all the suffering we have been made to suffer
How can they be under any more pressure than they already are?
G’wan Erik.
Are you referring to the tweet in the post above yours? He hasn't namechecked anybody, he's most likely talking about players who have already left the club, albeit there's still two or three here who fit that bill.
You may well be right, however I’m sure in his head this also includes players that are still at the club.
Wouldn’t fit his profile no.
He has signed players who are older but proven quality (Eriksen and Casemiro) or young potential in (Antony and Malacia). Martinez was one who he had worked with previously and also below 25.
He also says we can’t compete with City or Liverpool this year and top 4 is our championship. Second one on one he’s done with Mullock this season.
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/ten-hag-man-utd-siralex-28897597
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/ten-hag-man-utd-siralex-28897597
To be fair he just said City.
I like this, Pep was going on about lower expectations helping us this season and now we have Ten Hag saying 4th is our league win.
Good to hear, seems like he's thought of everything and doesn't just say things randomly.
He states Liverpool will come back, Arsenal are far ahead and we have to finish ahead of Chelsea, Spurs and Newcastle for top 4.
Ten Hag:
"Manchester United didn't exactly have the fear factor last season. There was no spirit. I saw no team dynamic in the squad. The mental resilience was very low. I saw that as an outsider - and also noticed it in my first weeks at the club. I looked at the culture of the club. I asked ‘how did Manchester United become great?"
"And for me, it was about Sir Alex Ferguson. His teams excelled in togetherness, collectivity, spirit. You just couldn't beat them."
"United always had top strikers like Cantona, Cole, Sheringham, Yorke, Van Nistelrooy, Van Persie. And top goalkeepers like Schmeichel, Van der Sar, De Gea."
"And think of players like Ryan Giggs or David Beckham. That’s the culture of Manchester United. I looked at that very carefully and then saw that last season's team looked fragile and vulnerable."
“When we get players, you look at their quality and technical skills. But you also look at their mental quality, that mental resilience - and we had to bring that back.”
"The club has bought an unimaginable number of players in recent years who have not been good enough."
"Most purchases have been average - and at United average is not good enough. United's shirt weighs heavily. Only real personalities, who can perform under great pressure, can play here."
"We needed personalities. That's why the acquisition of Casemiro was so important. Along with Raphael Varane, we now have a second player who has experience of winning titles."
"Malacia, Martinez, Casemiro, Antony are all fighters, while Christian Eriksen is a technical winner and a great personality. We want the best of the best. Any players we bring to Manchester United must meet the highest standard."
"I think we should be satisfied with where we are now given the bumps encountered in the early part of the season. We are not yet competitive with Manchester City - and I still see that club as a step too high at the moment."
"I also expect Liverpool to be right back - and I see them, together with City, as the two teams to beat in England. Also, Arsenal are having a super season and are already far ahead in the league."
"Below that, we have to battle with Chelsea, Newcastle and Spurs for the Champions League ticket, so the competition is huge. The club's aim is to play in the Champions League again. That should always be our goal. If we achieve that, it will feel like our championship."
"Manchester United didn't exactly have the fear factor last season. There was no spirit. I saw no team dynamic in the squad. The mental resilience was very low. I saw that as an outsider - and also noticed it in my first weeks at the club. I looked at the culture of the club. I asked ‘how did Manchester United become great?"
"And for me, it was about Sir Alex Ferguson. His teams excelled in togetherness, collectivity, spirit. You just couldn't beat them."
"United always had top strikers like Cantona, Cole, Sheringham, Yorke, Van Nistelrooy, Van Persie. And top goalkeepers like Schmeichel, Van der Sar, De Gea."
"And think of players like Ryan Giggs or David Beckham. That’s the culture of Manchester United. I looked at that very carefully and then saw that last season's team looked fragile and vulnerable."
“When we get players, you look at their quality and technical skills. But you also look at their mental quality, that mental resilience - and we had to bring that back.”
"The club has bought an unimaginable number of players in recent years who have not been good enough."
"Most purchases have been average - and at United average is not good enough. United's shirt weighs heavily. Only real personalities, who can perform under great pressure, can play here."
"We needed personalities. That's why the acquisition of Casemiro was so important. Along with Raphael Varane, we now have a second player who has experience of winning titles."
"Malacia, Martinez, Casemiro, Antony are all fighters, while Christian Eriksen is a technical winner and a great personality. We want the best of the best. Any players we bring to Manchester United must meet the highest standard."
"I think we should be satisfied with where we are now given the bumps encountered in the early part of the season. We are not yet competitive with Manchester City - and I still see that club as a step too high at the moment."
"I also expect Liverpool to be right back - and I see them, together with City, as the two teams to beat in England. Also, Arsenal are having a super season and are already far ahead in the league."
"Below that, we have to battle with Chelsea, Newcastle and Spurs for the Champions League ticket, so the competition is huge. The club's aim is to play in the Champions League again. That should always be our goal. If we achieve that, it will feel like our championship."
Like the first bit. The end feels 'realistic' but hate hearing it, even if it reflects the situation we are in.
I think considering the squad we have; that should be the realistic target. I’m fairly confident we’ll make top 4 this season, providing we bring in a goal scorer this window. We have a pretty good starting 11 but we lack quality options coming off the bench. We need another mid & starting striker next summer - should be our priority.
Not a wrong word in there. He is right
Well, damn. I mean, he is not wrong, but I'm not sure about saying it out loud. He will be managing some of these players tomorrow, next week, and for the foreseeable future.
Yeah if you stop reading after the first two paragraphs you can close your eyes and imagine his face morphing into Fergie's
It could very well mean players who have already been moved on.
Didn’t Ole get stick for saying something similar? I agreed with him then, too. We want to win the title again but there’s a point where it becomes delusional to talk about it. Just quietly improve and see how far we can get.
He is an honest person, perhaps even too honest at times. However, he is still a better choice than Ragnick or Van Gaal because he is pragmatic and emotionally controlled. He is also very focused on building a winning team, rather than just talking about philosophy. I like him and believe he might be the closest thing to Sir Alex in terms of personality.
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