Erik ten Hag - Manchester United manager

iato89

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Well you see it in this thread. You saw it with Qatar, the Bruno thread, etc. The difference between the Twitterati and actual supporters (not all match going) is quite marked. I used think a lot of them were trolls or oppo supporters. There are definitely shills pretending to support United say in the City thread. But many of the ‘negatives’ are just professional moaners who probably moan on a whole raft of sites because they are miserable people.
Oh Please, we have had a disaster of a epl campaign breaking all bad records with a zeor style of play ! ETH managed to arrange and get some winners back when he changed his style and reverted more to a counter attacking team, a total complete different style from what he wants and tried to implement that left us exposed all season ! But yes we are professional moanerd because we wanted a manager who had the worse league finish in the last 30 years, a GD-1, record number of losses etc etc GONE. You simpluy cant back up someone you dont beleive in. Remember when Utd gave OLE his second contract? and people liek shout spouted the same shit as above? What happened? he failed and got sacked and the club had to even compensate him more.
 

moses

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I have no idea either, yet.
One manager has the performance levels to actually be upset at not getting a new contract before the season. The other has absolutely no reason to expect a new contract and should be desperately trying to improve his performance levels to justify one.

We are told that the players are playing for him and that he’s the right man for the job. If so, he does not need a guarantee of a larger payout if he can’t get a tune out of them. The idea that he’s not going to face tough questions if performance levels don’t improve just because the club gives him a new contract is truly bizarre. We lose the first match of the season at OT and the boos will be ringing around and he will immediately be under incredible pressure, new contract or not.

Again, what if he starts the season with 5 straight losses? You might say that’s unrealistic but this is a manager who had us 95th out of 96 teams for shots faced in Europe’s top leagues and with an xPts of 44 across an entire season. We cannot afford to keep risking throwing away money for no gain. If he does actually do well this season, then he will get a new contract fairly swiftly.

It is not about rewarding the manager. It's about what is the best chance of the decision made being a success. You, like so many others don't like the decision so are pissed off.

You'd see that if you weren't blinded by disliking ETH. If you don't get some objectivity you will have an awful season next year and just keep whining, regardless.

Some of the fans are so twisted by this stance they couldn't fully enjoy that FA cup win. Which is mental, because as a 50 year old, that was such a good individual moment. Up there with the highest of highs a football fan can get.
 

iato89

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Injuries can affect performances and results. But the extent to which injuries or absences affect an entire tactical approach raises questions about the approach itself.

Real Madrid sold Karim Benzema, a Balon d'Or winning striker and the focal point of their attack for years, and did not buy another striker to replace him. Instead they signed Jude Bellingham, a midfielder. The manager changed tactics to account for Benzema's absence and the club won the league and CL. This did not require a radical "philosophical" transformation either, it's still basically the same style of play. They didn't have to become a different team.

Xavi, who is generally considered one of the best midfielders of all time, and a very "unique" player, spent most of 05/06 sidelined with a serious injury. Barcelona still won the league and CL that season. They still played "their" football (from what I recall). In the Guardiola era, Xavi didn't always play. People like Seydou Keita might play instead. They still won games by scoring lots and hogging possession.

There are many other examples. Most of them are less successful than winning league and CL title. But they are more successful than what happened at United this season.

There's two injury arguments people have used here, that I've seen. One is that United had the most injuries, disruptive injuries, etc. There is some merit to that (though again there are examples of teams that were perfectly capable of overcoming this). This is an argument that became more credible as the season went on.

The other argument, used earlier in the season, was that the injuries to Martinez and Shaw were the reason why United could not defend, do proper build-up play, or score goals. That a Martinez-like figure was 'extremely important to Ten Hag's system.' I think it's reasonable to look at that argument and wonder whether a tactical system that completely collapses in all parts of the pitch because of the absence of a single center back isn't too clever for its own good.
Perfectly said
 

SirScholes

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He didn’t pay 80million for Antony though did he?

He identified Antony as a player he’d like to work with again.. he didn’t negotiate or agree on contract/price. It’s likely he had absolutely nothing to do with that.

infact Antony earlier on in that particular transfer window would of cost half of what they paid. They literally could have got him cheaper but decided to wait until the end of the window when Ajax couldn’t replace him and they wacked the price up.

But carry on with your false narrative and totally ignore the fact that our recruitment has been over spending and poor for years.
If you think he just handed over a list and wasn’t involved in the final price you’re nuts
 

NLunited

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I think you've answered your own question in the last paragraph.

It is make or break and he'll know that, so why give him a new deal? If he's on £9 million a year that "bit extra" might amount to £18 million. He's been lucky to keep his job. Rewarding him with a new deal is bizarre.
There is no point in keeping Ten Hag if we don’t properly back him.

Based on how the season went, the ‘review’ and ensuing uncertainty was warranted.

It probably got really close to sacking him.

The benefit of keeping Ten Hag would be to continue the process started instead of focusing on short term results. He continued the process this season despite the injury crisis which cost us in the league.

To do that you need to back the manager. The other choice is to sack him and start over again. We tried that over and over.

Keeping him without renewing his contract isn’t going to work. The media are relentlessly trying to tear him and us down; now that they have recovered from being completely in the wrong they are fully at it again.

Remember he can still be dismissed, new contract or not. But importantly l, it shows the club backs him and takes the wind out of the sails of disgruntled players that should not be here and the media.
 

essao

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Thats up to you to decide, I dont count the Community shield as a trophy.

I dont get your point though.. Ole didnt win a trophy and he wasnt good enough either.
I was referring to to the 'two seasons two trophies' thing.i would rather the team played effective football,won no trophy and came fifth.
 

romufc

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There's two injury arguments people have used here, that I've seen. One is that United had the most injuries, disruptive injuries, etc. There is some merit to that (though again there are examples of teams that were perfectly capable of overcoming this). This is an argument that became more credible as the season went on.

The other argument, used earlier in the season, was that the injuries to Martinez and Shaw were the reason why United could not defend, do proper build-up play, or score goals. That a Martinez-like figure was 'extremely important to Ten Hag's system.' I think it's reasonable to look at that argument and wonder whether a tactical system that completely collapses in all parts of the pitch because of the absence of a single center back isn't too clever for its own good.
False. You have given a few examples of 1 player getting sold / injured and team plays a certain way, fair enough.

What you are ignoring is that Manutd didn't have 1 injury did they?

Stop making it seem as if it was 1 player we were missing, when in fact it wasn't.

We started the season 2 of our signings injured, Mount and Hojlund, so we have no striker at all. Then we had Sancho and Anotny issues to deal with, so the team is a mess at the start of the season, I hope you understand that bit.

like 6 games into a season, we have no LB because Shaw and Malacia injured, along with our LCB, when our manager has clearly said, he prefers left footed CB, let alone left footed LB. So we are playing Ambrabat, someone who has just walked in the door at LB.

I hope fans understand that to work on a system that works, you need to work on it in training, how can you when the players coming in are so late in the window and are injured?

Then in the middle of the season we have Lisandro, Shaw, Lindelof, Maguire, Varane injured so we go to West Ham with Kambala and Evans. Now, show me a club where they are relying on 5th and 6th choice CB pairings and winning all these trophies? Add to that the CDM Casemiro injured too.

Yeah injuries you may see as an excuse but I want you show me examples of this and teams winning leagues, because you said there have been examples.
 

romufc

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I was referring to to the 'two seasons two trophies' thing.i would rather the team played effective football,won no trophy and came fifth.
What does effective football mean?

Everyone has their own opinion on what is "effective" football. Manutd have always been a team that played football to win.

So you would rather not win trophies?
 

Rista

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I was referring to to the 'two seasons two trophies' thing.i would rather the team played effective football,won no trophy and came fifth.
As should anyone consdering the sitation we're in. But people would rather fixate on a domestic cup than on actual progress. Ole was so right about this.
 

Doracle

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I think we were the biggest spej



It is not about rewarding the manager. It's about what is the best chance of the decision made being a success. You, like so many others don't like the decision so are pissed off.

You'd see that if you weren't blinded by disliking ETH. If you don't get some objectivity you will have an awful season next year and just keep whining, regardless.

Some of the fans are so twisted by this stance they couldn't fully enjoy that FA cup win. Which is mental, because as a 50 year old, that was such a good individual moment. Up there with the highest of highs a football fan can get.
The FA Cup win was great. I certainly enjoyed it. Not sure why any United fan wouldn’t.

I don’t dislike ETH at all. He seems a nice enough guy and it would be great if he succeeds. If he turns it around, I’ll be delighted and acknowledge that the board was right to keep him . In no way shape or form should he be getting a new contract though until he has evidenced that he is turning it around.

Your entire basis for saying we should give him a new contract seems to be premised on it being necessary to do so because he was so bad last season that he nearly got sacked. As such, you think he has to have a new contract to protect him in the event it goes badly to show faith and avoid the players thinking he’s a dead duck. I really shouldn’t need to explain how deeply flawed this reasoning is.
 

moses

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I have no idea either, yet.
The FA Cup win was great. I certainly enjoyed it. Not sure why any United fan wouldn’t.

I don’t dislike ETH at all. He seems a nice enough guy and it would be great if he succeeds. If he turns it around, I’ll be delighted and acknowledge that the board was right to keep him . In no way shape or form should he be getting a new contract though until he has evidenced that he is turning it around.

Your entire basis for saying we should give him a new contract seems to be premised on it being necessary to do so because he was so bad last season that he nearly got sacked. As such, you think he has to have a new contract to protect him in the event it goes badly to show faith and avoid the players thinking he’s a dead duck. I really shouldn’t need to explain how deeply flawed this reasoning is.

No, it's not flawed. You sack him or back him. A lame duck will most likely be a weaker manager of a modern football team with the level of player power.
 

NLunited

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I strongly disagree. MU has the most deluded,gullible,mediocrity-tolerant fans on the galaxy.This is a fanbase that supports all managers,not the club,regardless of how crappy their performance. No wonder the club is going backwards,and the fans of rival clubs are jubilant about what has happened.

Let's see how Mr Hag handles the incoming pressure and scrutiny. I am happy there will be no hiding place for him from day one.
I’m sure the fans of Chelsea, Newcastle, Pool and Cheaty are delighted. We fecked them all this season:
  • knocked Newcastle out of Europe
  • bumped Chelsea into conference league
  • ruined Pools farewell tour for Klopp
  • ruined Cheaty’s ‘double-double’
We have the best fans, who support in good and bad times. Try to be a better fan or feck off to support Cheaty.
 

Sarni

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:lol: You are truly the best troll on here.
The downside of my actions in this thread in the last 6-7 months is that everyone seems to think I'm on a constant wind up now. I'm not, I actually intend to be serious here and support the coach.

On this particular topic, he was a very harsh disciplinarian in his first season I thought, punishing players for every misstep. He pushed Ronaldo out, punished Rashford for being late, fell out with Sancho etc. He became a bit mellow in his second year I thought and would tolerate more than he needed, with only Amad and Varane being frozen out.
 
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Chumpsbechumps

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how is effective football effective if it doesnt win trophies or can only finish 5th? doesnt sound that effective to me.
And is it effective football if Man United finish 5th?

This sounds like airy fairy jargon like “corporate values” or “best practise” that are ambiguous, sound like something you should want but don’t tell us anything.

What people are confusing is where we are right now to where we want to get to. We want to be challenging for league and CL, but haven’t done it in over a decade. Even looking at our squad , it needs alot of work.

I expect a very different season with ETH, probably closer to the first one when we hit that sweet period. Last season was an anomaly, that’s what INEOs and many fans feel so we get to see now if ETH can build on both seasons , including the awful one we’ve just had.
 

Wilt

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There is no point in keeping Ten Hag if we don’t properly back him.

Based on how the season went, the ‘review’ and ensuing uncertainty was warranted.

It probably got really close to sacking him.

The benefit of keeping Ten Hag would be to continue the process started instead of focusing on short term results. He continued the process this season despite the injury crisis which cost us in the league.

To do that you need to back the manager. The other choice is to sack him and start over again. We tried that over and over.

Keeping him without renewing his contract isn’t going to work. The media are relentlessly trying to tear him and us down; now that they have recovered from being completely in the wrong they are fully at it again.

Remember he can still be dismissed, new contract or not. But importantly l, it shows the club backs him and takes the wind out of the sails of disgruntled players that should not be here and the media.
What exactly is Ten Hag‘s “process” ….tbh after £400m spent I’ve yet to find out what it is?
 

Rista

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how is effective football effective if it doesnt win trophies or can only finish 5th? doesnt sound that effective to me.
Effective is not the best word. But at this point in time it would be far more beneficial to us to play coherent football with clearly defined play style that we can build upon. Think Klopp when he first arrived. It doesn't have to be consistent until we get the signings right but it would still be much more valuable than the shitshow we produced last season and winning a domestic cup. "Two trophies in two years" doesn't tell us anything about where we actually stand right now, that's the problem with it.
 

essao

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It is not about rewarding the manager. It's about what is the best chance of the decision made being a success. You, like so many others don't like the decision so are pissed off.

You'd see that if you weren't blinded by disliking ETH. If you don't get some objectivity you will have an awful season next year and just keep whining, regardless.

Some of the fans are so twisted by this stance they couldn't fully enjoy that FA cup win. Which is mental, because as a 50 year old, that was such a good individual moment. Up there with the highest of highs a football fan can get.
When will people realize criticizing a manager does not mean they hate him?He may be a standup guy who sings at kids' birthdays,but this should not absolve him from criticism when he delivers crap performances. We should support the club,not the manager.
 

Castia

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Worrying hearing murmurings about a small transfer budget. Not expecting to spend 400m but damn this squad needs improving else the season is a write off regardless of who’s in charge
 

Iker Quesadillas

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False. You have given a few examples of 1 player getting sold / injured and team plays a certain way, fair enough.

What you are ignoring is that Manutd didn't have 1 injury did they?

Stop making it seem as if it was 1 player we were missing, when in fact it wasn't.
I provided those examples because, as I said in my post, the less credible injury argument is that United can't perform without Lisandro Martinez (add Luke Shaw there too if you want) because he's super important to 'the way Ten Hag wants to play.' This argument was made many times in the earlier part of the season and is one of the reasons why there is backlash against bringing up injuries.

As for the effect of multiple injuries, I provided an example earlier. Real Madrid had a serious injury crisis in 21/22, here is an article in The Athletic: Real Madrid and their extraordinary injury crisis.

“There’s no reasonable explanation to it,” said Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane. “We’re all sorry not to have all these injured players with us.” Zidane was speaking ahead of the Champions League last-16 first leg at Atalanta on February 24, a game he had just 10 fit senior outfield players available for. Madrid’s injury list featured (deep breath!) Karim Benzema, Sergio Ramos, Dani Carvajal, Fede Valverde, Eden Hazard, Rodrygo, Eder Militao, Marcelo and Alvaro Odriozola.
There were similarities between that season and United's season. The team's most important center back (Sergio Ramos) missed 22 league games. The team's most important full back (Dani Carvajal) missed 23 league games. His substitute(s) both missed 12 league games. Eden Hazard, signed to be one of the main attacking players, missed 22 league games. Madrid had something like 65 injuries that season. All these injuries meant they had to field strange lineups some times, the back four was constantly changing based on availability, they had to play youth teamers and cast-offs for CB and FB positions, etc. All similar issues as United.

But they performed well. They reached CL semis (which was an improvement on the previous two seasons when they crashed out in R16) and competed in the league until the last day. Now, did the injuries have an impact? Of course they did. The play was worse, the wins were more of a struggle, and when faced with a legitimately tough team (Chelsea in the CL semis) they were played off the pitch. They also didn't win the league, unlike the previous season (think there was a 4-5 point difference).

I don't think anyone has ever argued that injuries don't matter at all. The pushback is against the idea that there is a linear relationship between number of injuries and points lost, and that managers have no room to maneuver when it comes to injuries. You can judge a manager on their ability to maneuver around injuries, their tactical flexibility, etc. Even the great ones. They can be bad at it. You can then judge whether their benefits outweight that negative.
 
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DomesticTadpole

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Worrying hearing murmurings about a small transfer budget. Not expecting to spend 400m but damn this squad needs improving else the season is a write off regardless of who’s in charge
That is where they need to be ruthless in selling people. Also now have to be really smart in buying, the past mistakes are now catching up with us. Don't let other teams take you for mugs. Also they cannot let ETH chose the players he has worked with or witness in Netherlands. They really need to just give him options to chose from.
 

LawCharltonBest

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Can't shake feeling that we've just delayed the inevitable. I don't want to think so negatively but can't see anything else happening.

If we're lingering outside the top 4 in November, are people going to remember the FA Cup win, or that we finished 8th? 2 months ago it seemed certain he was gone and 70% or more wanted that to happen. It'll quickly become like that again if/when we start losing games again in the early season.

If I were United I would drag out these new contract talks until December in case they want to U-turn
 

Wrecking ralf

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That has me intrigued as well.
Probably the piss takers who are constantly arsing about and being unserious even though the team was playing shit. I’d imagine as a coach under scrutiny, you’d want your players to get their heads down and stop piss arsing about to get themselves and their team out of the slump. Dick about when you’re playing well, not when you’re leaking goals and everyone’s injured.
 

Sarni

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Worrying hearing murmurings about a small transfer budget. Not expecting to spend 400m but damn this squad needs improving else the season is a write off regardless of who’s in charge
To be fair we’ve already invested £400m without recouping much. We probably need to sell a few players to raise money now.

I think some improvement will have to come internally, we have several young players who should be getting better and some of the expensive signings like Mount, Antony may come good still.

The only issue with selling players is the ones we were trying to offload last year are actually the ones that were the most reliable during the season, so I’m not sure anymore whether we will still be looking at selling them… and we don’t have that many assets that can fetch a good price in the market.
 

whitbyviking

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I would think the only thing that makes sense is they've discussed a new contract with more performance related clauses (would imagine related to termination but also bonus/incentives/extensions) and the removal of his transfer veto.

He can perform, he showed that first season and in flashes this. If they can get him to buy into a performance related contract, with a reduced input in transfers then it could benefit us greatly. It removes the responsibility for the squad from him and could be a way to end player power. The players are going to be a senior management issue, and will gain less from acting against the manager.
 

ShinjiNinja26

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Worrying hearing murmurings about a small transfer budget. Not expecting to spend 400m but damn this squad needs improving else the season is a write off regardless of who’s in charge
We’ll soon see who’s been speaking shite, the journalist’s saying there’s hardly any money or that guy on Twitter everyone was posting who said FFP wouldn’t be an issue and we could spend up to £300m this summer and still be fine.
 

diarm

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You don't think the Glazers ownership model and the debt have held the club back over the last 11 years post SAF?
Alexthelion is a fully paid up Glazer stooge.

I’m surprised anyone pays his opinions any attention after the way he conducted himself during the protests a couple of years ago.
 

Jeffthered

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Thank god the club and the fans have you to guide them.
Your response is personal, and that's rather pointless. As a member of the staff team, I commend you and colleagues on maintaining what is an excellent, excellent platform. But please keep matters football related ok.

Last season we were average at best, consistently abject and shockingly poor at times. ETH has shown little or no ability to take this football club onto the next level. I challenge you or anyone to suggest otherwise. This great cup win, this tactical masterclass right? Maybe watch the game again because I hope that isn't the blueprint of next season. Is that what you want?

Coventry City were inches from deservedly knocking us out.

But hey, let's forget that, ignore realism.

Daft, personal comments made to members of the forum serve no purpose at all. I'm more interested in the facts.