Erik ten Hag | 2024/25

[Mingus]

He was over that side due to the set piece. No idea why but at that point he has to engage the player on the ball. I doubt we had a plan for who covers for him as we'd changed half our team by that point. We were knackered late in the game and this is part of what happens when you play a right back at left back, change the system etc.

ETH's in game management concerns me constantly. If we do start with a plan it seems to disappear quickly

At this point in the season we're trying to get everyone fit. The new signings and successful internationals, in particular, have had little opportunity to get matchfit. Many players first pre-season match was the Community Shield.

The substitutions today were down to getting the squad at the same level of fitness. DeLigt will start usually but has had little football recently. When everyone is matchfit and settled (hopefully Ugarte) the substitutions will likely be for more tactical reasons.

 

[Judas]

But you'd assume if EtH goes then the next manager would revolve around the same philosophy to a degree

We won't be doing a LvG -> Mourinho -> Ole scenario again....you'd hope

What’s the philosophy?

 

[iato89]

A lot of y’all and the fan base in general went crazy over the FA cup win and will come back down to reality very quickly. ETH football philosophy is dated and that is why the team is regularly found lacking.

Bingo! The fan base us too fickle and the FA cup ruined another season

 

[astracrazy]

Can’t see that. New manager almost always means other players

You're missing the point. Same style which is the factor and why you have a DoF to over see this.

LvG to Jose to Ole was completely different styles.

EtH to ??? If it happens won't be. So yes new signings, but not tearing the squad up and starting again scenario.

What’s the philosophy?

Again, someone else more interested in picking an argument than seeing the point.

Ask our DoF and TD what the planned philosophy long term is.

How do you think somone like Brighton does so well signing wise? Tearing up the script everytime a new manager comes in or??

 

[Trophy Room]

Yeah, he made some mistakes today. The reality is that at best we’ll be a cup team with ETH.

 

[izec]

For a 3rd season it’s just staggering how far away we look from being a well oiled machine. We’re just such a clunky team to watch. We consistently look rusty. We have moments of looking smooth, which are exciting. But there’s just always something not quite connecting. I want it to click, but I’ve been saying that for years under Ten Hag at this point.

Yes, but he has not his best team available yet. Plus he needs more time, and more luck of course. Also, possession football is not in our DNA, and City are too good at it, we cant beat them there. I would trust in him and give him more funds.

Arteta also was rubbish in his first 3 years. Arsenal fans wanted him out, then he got lucky, and here we are.

 

[SparcMac]

The league table doesn’t care if we’re lucky or not.

sure, the performance is better than last season, which is an incredibly low bar anyways, but I’m still alarmed by the fact that we continue to concede last minute goals.

True, that left us in a bad spot last season, this season it should be a lot better. We also won many points on the last mins last season and will probably do the same this season. Before late October I don't think we see a 10/10 performance yet.

 

[Valencia Shin Crosses]

Just once I want to see us handle a team comfortably. Once. Every manager we've had post SAF did it numerous times in between the usual crap. Under Ten Hag we've maybe done so 3(?) times total.

 

[DownRiver]

After 3 years, the team is a mirror of the manager. Conceding the most last minute goals (90+ mins) since 22/23 is on ETH. Remember, United are known for scoring in the last minutes, so he has done a whole u-turn.

 

[golden_blunder]

Pressure on earlier than I thought it would

Needs a win versus Liverpool and a new Dutch manager that he should be well versed on

 

[iato89]

How do you know it's not being addressed? The manager and the staff aren't playing the games.

We were very unlucky today, in a difficult away game. It happens.

We were outplayed in the second half!

 

[Patrick220571]

Now in our third season under this manager, and he still cannot set a side up to get a result against any half decent side away from home.

We have taken 4 points from a possible 27 away from home, against the sides that finished in the top 10 in each of his previous seasons. Add in our poor form at Old Trafford last season, which was his saviour in his first season.

Now lost our first away game of the new season. We may not have given Brighton 25-30 shots on goal, but a good chunk of that performance just felt like a repeat of last season.

 

[RedC]

Pressure on earlier than I thought it would

Needs a win versus Liverpool and a new Dutch manager that he should be well versed on

Is it really? Brighton away is always a tough game. I don't think any team in the league has that fixture down as a certain win. We conceded a stupid goal in stoppage time.

 

[stevoc]

But you'd assume if EtH goes then the next manager would revolve around the same philosophy to a degree

We won't be doing a LvG -> Mourinho -> Ole scenario again....you'd hope

What philosophy though?

Are you saying the next manager will have to just try to carry on whatever the feck it is that Ten Hag is trying to implement?

Most likely if/when Ten Hag goes we'll have to have another big clearout as let's be honest including this summers buys 80% of this squad has been built by Ten Hag. Now another manager will likely lkke a lot of those players but the new DOF/footballing structure will want to start putting their fingerprints on the squad. A change of manager will give them that opportunity.

 

[Yakuza_devils]

If we keep doing slow, short, safe, meaningless passing around without any real threat, what's the point? Our style of play is so slow and easy to defend against. Onana alone takes few minutes to make a short pass to a defender 6 yards away.

We need to play at higher speed and intensity. This is PL, ffs

 

[Oranges038]

Nice to see the circular discussion back in full flow.

 

[UnofficialDevil]

Bingo! The fan base us too fickle and the FA cup ruined another season

Can a win be a loss?

 

[Werd.]

Yeah. We play chaos ball but don't create much, but concede too many chances. We don't have any control in games, but we love having Onana and the 2 CBs pass the ball between each other all game. We aren't good at set pieces, despite having guys like Maguire, Casemiro, McTominay pretty often out there.

It's literally the outcome you get when you collect a group of individuals and don't coach them properly. Take away all the background noise last season and you still had a really poorly coached team.

Bang on.

All the signs were there last week vs Fulham that the same issues from last season are still there but the marginal improvements made people overlook them.

Marginal improvements for a manager in his 3rd season with the amount of backing he has received are not good enough.

 

[Rojofiam]

Bruno sub was awful today. I don't have an issue with throwing on McTominay in that game-state towards the end at 1-1, but he should've kept Bruno on even if he put him on the wing or something.

Other than that, I don't think we deserved to lose this game today, but at the same time, we didn't (couldn't?) exert as much control over the game as we should've. We weren't good enough despite not deserving to lose.

Obviously not gonna go kneejerk mode after 2 games.

 

[Escobar]

Attacking football and creating chances still poor. Controlling a game inexistent. Being focused at the back and taking chances also not happening. On top, we have another formation that does not work and will not last, especially since 2 midfielders just dont cut it.

 

[Yakuza_devils]

Liverpool and Brighton both have new manager without signing any players and they play better than us. Meanwhile, ETH need 3 years and 600mil playing zombie football.

Looks like another season gone and Ineos first major mistake?

 

[DWelbz19]

Utd are now committed to Ten Hag, bringing in the players he wants means it has to work otherwise a new manager will be ripping up the squad again, which Utd can't afford. Ugarte will cement that, another hyper presser rather than an all rounder.

They are, but the commitment could easily (and probably will) just last this season. I think we finish at around 6th or 7th, with the same amount of goals scored all season.

Hopefully the signings stop at Ugarte this summer. Next summer we will 100% have moved on McTominay, Eriksen, and Casemiro. There’s a whole lot of rebuilding in the most important area of the field that needs to be overseen by a manager who actually wants to set up with a midfield to play football.

 

[lsd]

But you'd assume if EtH goes then the next manager would revolve around the same philosophy to a degree

We won't be doing a LvG -> Mourinho -> Ole scenario again....you'd hope

Well we don't have any philosophy at the minute so it would be nice to have some kind of idea of a style of play

 

[Sandikan]

Can't afford too many results like that Erik, INEOS just will not stand for it I am certain of it

They've just extended his contract!

 

[DWelbz19]

We aren't good at anything consistently. It's really weird.

Even if we were a long ball, long throw shithouse team but really effective at it that would be better.

Yeah. We play chaos ball but don't create much, but concede too many chances. We don't have any control in games, but we love having Onana and the 2 CBs pass the ball between each other all game. We aren't good at set pieces, despite having guys like Maguire, Casemiro, McTominay pretty often out there.

It's literally the outcome you get when you collect a group of individuals and don't coach them properly. Take away all the background noise last season and you still had a really poorly coached team.

In addition to this, we’ve actually regressed at the [few] things we were good at pre-ten Hag. That 3v2 which Amad messed up; the disallowed Garnacho goal this game; the miss last game…

They were all pretty messy and the final pass or finish was sketchy in all of those chances. It was the same last season season too. Under Ole (before it went all shite) these were bread and butter chances we’d scoop up near enough every game.

 

[Berbaclass]

Liverpool and Brighton both have new manager without signing any players and they play better than us. Meanwhile, ETH need 3 years and 600mil playing zombie football.

Looks like another season gone and Ineos first major mistake?

Brighton have spent loads of money

 

[DWelbz19]

They've just extended his contract!

Triggered his extension, no new contract. It was the limpest show of support they could do.

 

[Yakuza_devils]

Stop saying we are unlucky. Our attacking and defending are terrible. A good team make their own luck by winning with comfortable margin scoring more goals and solid in defence.

Look at City 4-1 and Spurs 4-0 today! How often ETH won more than one goal? We are shit, not unlucky!

 

[Berbaclass]

Stop saying we are unlucky. Our attacking and defending are terrible. A good team make their own luck by winning with comfortable margin scoring more goals and solid in defence.

Look at City 4-1 and Spurs 4-0 today! How often ETH won more than one goal? We are shit, not unlucky!

How was the Zirkzee non-goal not unlucky? We weren’t great today but not awful either.

 

[Yakuza_devils]

Brighton have spent loads of money

Oops but the main point is they have new manager and the style of play is already very clear!

 

[Someone]

I'm ETH in but I'm a bit tired of the borefest week in week out. We're an incredibly dull team even at our best. And I still don't get why we can't play a decent form of attacking football. I'd be completely fine if we're good but flawed, kinda like early Klopp days with Liverpool. Yes we probably should've won today but we're the worst team to watch in the top 10. If we get 3rd or 4th playing this shite football week in week out I wouldn't call it progress. It's tiresome and we've spent enough money to be better than this.

 

[Yakuza_devils]

How was the Zirkzee non-goal not unlucky? We weren’t great today but not awful either.

How many game we need to keep saying we are unlucky? City and Arsenal keeps missing chances after chances but they keep going and score more goals than opponent.

 

[Robbie Boy]

Was out for some lunch today and was watching this. Left around the 93rd minute and was pissed off with another lacklustre performance and a 1-1 draw. A few minutes later my phone started hopping and I thought we might have nicked a late goal. But nope.

 

[Dominos]

but I’m still alarmed by the fact that we continue to concede last minute goals.

We play hot potato football with players who are turnover machines.

Ten Hag has built a side who can't keep possession of a football. And we wonder why we find ourselves hanging on for dear life at the end of games, because we keep giving the ball back to the opposition cheaply.

 

[Andycoleno9]

Tbh, i wish that we stop just buying players until we see good performances on the pitch.
This is just sick. Throwing millions on players and playing same boring shit over and over.
We spent 600 mil so far under ETH. These results could have been done with team which Solskjaer left.

Dave
Dalot, Varane, Lindelof, Shaw
Pereira, Fred
Sancho, Bruno, Rashford
Ronaldo
Mainoo, Garnacho, Awb, Maguire, McT on the bench.

Same shit.

 

[Lentwood]

The EtH blueprint for tossing away points late on in games....

1. Drop the defensive lines 30-yards to invite pressure from teams we were comfortably containing to ensure shots, set-pieces and crosses rain down on your goal

2. Sub off the defenders who are warm, focused and sharp and bring on cold defenders from the bench who are immediately under the cosh because of 1)

3. Don't sub players who are running on fumes and leaving huge gaps, instead remove any player who is a good presser, good at keeping the ball or a good outlet, thus ensuring maximum chaos in the final minutes.

4. Sub off your best set-piece defender, leaving teenagers and midgets to mark classic old-school PL warhorse CBs and CFs.

5. Do this over and over again to destroy players' confidence and make the fans edgy, thus creating a nice little vicious negative feedback loop

 

[Werd.]

How many game we need to keep saying we are unlucky? City and Arsenal keeps missing chances after chances but they keep going and score more goals than opponent.

Certain portion of the fan base have gotten so used to the mediocrity that now they actually embrace it.

 

[Moston Red]

Seems to be the same old problems. Defence, midfield and lack of goal threat.

 

[2mufc0]

They triggered the extension on his existing contract. A stay of execution.

I can only hope you are right.

 

[Moriarty]

Can’t see that. New manager almost always means other players

Usually, but we have to consider the new overseers. They won't be keen to cater to a new manager's wants given the money that's been spent. If Ten Hag goes, I think they'll look to Ruud. He's in place already and, if the papers are to be believed, anxious to become a manager.