What are your expectations for Ten Hag's first season?

How he does depends on what happens in the summer. For Ten Hag to have even the slightest chance of success, he has to start with a clean slate and by "clean slate" I mean a genuinely clean slate. This means that every "key member" of this disastrous squad has to either be sold, released or completely ostracized by pre-season or else, he's going to fail. They are the root causes of where we are right now. Somehow, Manchester United managed to put together the most gutless, spineless group of football players on the planet. Here's hoping Ten Hag has to balls to take bold decisions from the jump. The fans are fully behind him.
 
Season 1. Enjoyable football, players working hard and seeing the tactics translating from the training ground into the pitch. Getting rid of the layabouts.
Season 2. Comfortably top 4, starting to become a serious force, some select signings on key areas.
Season 3. Compete for PL and CL. Don’t have to win but be up there/close.
Season 4. Quadruple or sack…
 
The Oracle said:
What are your expectations for Ten Hag's first season?

Noticeable effort from the players on the pitch.
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Just this. The lack of effort particularly this season but going back several seasons, has been the most frustrating for me. Sure you can lose a game but at least fecking try not to.
 
Like others said, a clear and defined style of play. I want us to play with aggression and always on the front foot, even if we end up losing games.
 
My expectations are that he finds his feet in a new club, in a new league and figures out the players at the club(both on and off the field). Theres something not right at the club, and I hope in his negotiations hes got himself some power to actually make changes that make his job easier. Because if not, its just going to be more of the same. I dont expect him to be winning anything thats for sure.
 
By the second half of the season I expect us to regularly be better than the majority of the teams we play. That will be enough for me. Spending three years under Ole, plus time under Jose, playing worse football than every other team in the league....I can’t cope with anymore. I want to see players starting to look effective and the Caf to have no reason to blame all the players, which frankly is ridiculous.
 
Progress towards fast, attacking, energetic, entertaining football. That's all. I don't care about cups or league position, I just want a clear style to evolve and for us to begin building a team consisting of players who put in the effort and listen to instructions.
 
I think we're in for some rough times next season. I just hope there's enough promising glimpses to keep going with the process and for the fans and board to keep faith. I do think Ten Hag is talented enough to improve us as long as enough money and patience is given to him, and that football decisions take precedence. We'll see.
 
  1. Top 10 finish
  2. Gutting of squad
  3. Promotion of academy players
  4. Good run in the fa and league cups
  5. New playing style evident on the pitch.
 
I expect him to sign 5-6 young, hard-working talented players from the Dutch, French and German leagues. No huge names for megabucks. We won't win anything the first season, but I expect us to have a clear style of play and that we will improve continuously. I won't be against it if we keep Ronaldo as a star name, but the other fat cats will have to go.
 
Valencia Shin Crosses said:
Nah feck that and feck sentiment. Klopp was 6th with Liverpool his first year but you could clearly see the vision and they were a terror to play against.Id be perfectly happy with a similar season here where the structure and system is promising that is in place, and we just have to improve personnel. Would much prefer that over scraping top 4 without much of an identity and just individual brilliance saving us
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It’s become quite popular to use Klopp as an example about patience and time but it’s a complete myth. Their progress was quick and linear. They finished 4th in his first full season and made a CL final in his 2nd. Bearing in mind he didn’t have anywhere near the transfer budget we do.
 
Tavern in the town said:
It’s become quite popular to use Klopp as an example about patience and time but it’s a complete myth. Their progress was quick and linear. They finished 4th in his first full season and made a CL final in his 2nd. Bearing in mind he didn’t have anywhere near the transfer budget we do.
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He took over in October though so he had plenty of time to instil his methods going into his first full season, which was basically his second. That's not a comparable situation to what Ten Hag is walking into.

First season is a write off there's too much to do. I wouldn't be at all surprised if we missed out on top 4, as long as we look like it's building to something i don't care.
 
Smores said:
He took over in October though so he had plenty of time to instil his methods going into his first full season, which was basically his second. That's not a comparable situation to what Ten Hag is walking into.

First season is a write off there's too much to do. I wouldn't be at all surprised if we missed out on top 4, as long as we look like it's building to something i don't care.
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He took over in October so yes he did have time to work with players but he didn’t have a summer window to bring his own players in which is what Ten Hag was doing. The moment he did they became much much better.
 
Implementing a style of play and getting the players to play it. Having a good clear out in the squad. Top four but also showing ambition in the cups and if we lose we were unlucky to lose, not that we went out there like cowards.
 
Liverpool and City will still be the dominant ones.

But I expect United to be that club just behind, with the better young talents and more potential to grow. I think Firmino, Mane and Salah will all be 30 years old next season, so United need to start showing the makings of a team that will eclipse the current big dogs
 
Squad:
Filtering out the deadwood (phase 2)
Select players who want to play for United.
Get rid of the lazy ones and those who don't fit his tactics - one by one.
Improve all the average players.
Play youth players from time to time.

Style of Play:
Develop a distinct style of play and character.
Irrespective of results, change on the pitch should be noticeable.
Get players to fight till the end give 100% every week.
Strong defensively.
Plug gaps and improve over the course of the season.
Regain control of the team.

Results:
Beat teams we should be beating.
Improve performance at home.
Get a couple of wins over our main rivals (City, Liverpool, and Chelsea).

Final Finish:
A fighting 4th place finish wouldn't be bad. Semi-final run in cups. No trophies expected.

By the end of 2023 season, we should have a clear idea about where the team is going and what else we need to do to get back top.
 
WPMUFC said:
  1. Top 10 finish
  2. Gutting of squad
  3. Promotion of academy players
  4. Good run in the fa and league cups
  5. New playing style evident on the pitch.
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This.

If we are really doing such a big rebuild, don't know how many people expect easy Top 4 here. With those expectations you can already see the moaning about results with wanting ETH out next season.
 
Chances of anyone really being happy with 10th, if you think about the kind of results that entails... seems pretty unlikely. Manager would probably be sacked.
 
sullydnl said:
Personally I'd be aiming for top four but fine with a lower place finish if there are some signs of progress in how we're playing.

I'm particularly concious of the fact that his attempt to get us to play the way he wants will be disrupted by everyone fecking off to the World Cup after a few months.
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Feel the same. Whats the point of top 4 finish if the football we play is taking us nowhere which is why I think people continually mentioning Oles top 4 finishes didn't look at the bigger picture.

I'd happily take an 8th place finish if we get rid of half the squad but starting seeing a marked improvement in our way of playing towards the end of the season but as you say the WC could be a stumbling block. Haven't looked forward to a start of a season as much as this one in a decade though. At least the hope has been restored.
 
Firstly, there needs to be a clear out, and by that, I mean a complete clear out. He has to begin with every single player who is underwhelmed by his appointment, many of whom have been leaking for months their doubts over him now. Otherwise, he’ll be undermined before he even begins the toughest job of his life. Then, he has to get rid of the players who while they might be good lads, are simply not good enough for Manchester United, like AWB, Jones and Mata. I’d imagine the likes of Maguire will have no suitors, so we’ll have to keep him. That frees up the wage bill massively.

I also expect him to buy smart, rather than simply accepting every marquee player we can get our hands on like previous managers, or worse, spending gargantuan sums on bang average players. Ole really did screw us over by spending £140m on Maguire and AWB, and that mistake should not be repeated. I’d want young, efficient and technically gifted footballers like Timber, Neves, Antony and Nunez, who I presume in total will cost around what Maguire and AWB did. Players like these guys can grow with the team, like Robertson, Mane and Salah did for Liverpool. The game changers like Alisson, VvD and Thiago can come later.

Away from transfers, I’d like to see him continue with the disciplinarian approach he has employed at Ajax over here. This is a really toxic group of players who give up and throw their toys out the pram whenever the going gets remotely tough, or at least they have this season after a decent, albeit trophyless 20-21 season. If he acts all friendly with them, it’ll be the exact same story as Ole where he’ll get continually trodden on. I’m not saying that he should slam them at every opportunity like Jose or Ralf, but he has to be tough. An LvG approach would probably sit well, as our players never actually downed tools under LvG where every press conference was humorous or at the very least, about him. Ten Hag deals with the press very authoritatively, so that aspect is highly encouraging.

On the pitch, I’m expecting no more than a top 4 challenge with a visible and improved style of play, where we at least keep possession better and actually try to take the initiative against the decent sides, like his Ajax team. Unless something goes radically wrong with Chelsea, which won’t happen as their crisis has been the most overblown story in history, the top 3 places are already sewn up next season. Then, you’ve got Spurs with a settled XI equipped with a Conte pre-season and the full understanding of his tactics, a strengthened Arsenal with their young players all a year older and a West Ham with more depth and possibly, if not probably coming off a European trophy. It’s going to be extremely difficult for a team likely to lose up to 10 players in the summer and who would have already been in a transitional state due to the young, incoming manager and current league position.

If he delivers on each front, it’ll be an excellent first season.
 
I have none, I just hope he gets to see out his three years and the fans stick by him as he is obviously a very good coach and has a good style of play.
 
Good football and a clear and obvious system. I also expect us to challenge for top 4 at the very least.
 
Not to look like absolute caveman during build-up play.

Honestly, I don’t think we’ve played good football since 2008. Ever since Berbatov joined / Queiroz left, we started playing slower, and it’s never got back to the same standard. I can recall zombie passing threads even during Fergie’s last seasons.

I just want to see each player have options when passing the ball and some movement in the front line.
 
Eckers99 said:
I'm more bothered about seeing a clearer identity by the end of the season than trophies. A clear style of play, fitter players, more enthusiasm and work rate. I just want us to at least do the basics well.
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This is all I want from the first season.
 
I filly expect us to drop to 10th/11th in the league before Christmas and for him to be sacked by our shit the bed owners.
 
Realistically I am pretty sure the club will have set a top four goal. The finances involved are too important to them for that to have gone unspecified. Missing out will be painful.

It's all very well many of us giving ETH a pass as long as he shows signs of progress but I think realistically speaking there is only so badly he can do while retaining faith in his process. If you look at how diabolical this season has been, top 4 still hasn't been out of the question.

It's going to be harder next season due to the need to gel together a side while the likes of Spurs and Arsenal attempt to improve, but I still think it's a fair target. There is no way he can finish 8th or 10th and play some pretty football. That's Aston Villa.
 
On second thoughts, we need to change everything with complete overhaul of the squad, so we shouldn’t expect anything in short term:

1st season: doesn’t matter, we are starting everything all over again from scratch. It’s unrealistic to ask for anything. Just improve overall structure/teamplay and avoid relegation would be ok.
2nd season: top 4-6 finish
3rd season: top 3-4 finish
4th season onwards: trophies
 
RedRonaldo said:
On second thoughts, we need to change everything with complete overhaul of the squad, so we shouldn’t expect anything in short term:

1st season: doesn’t matter, we are building everything from scratch. Just improve overall structure/teamplay and avoid relegation would be ok.
2nd season: top 4-6 finish
3rd season: top 3-4 finish
4th season onwards: trophies
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So coming 6th after 2 full seasons would be acceptable?

We may be in a bit of a state, but we have a lot of good players and a lot of financial resource. Nobody should expect early trophies, and we can have a pass for the first season, but then it's time to be competing seriously.
 
‘Patterns of play’ for the first season. Want to see us build some sort of identity out there on the pitch.
 
Tavern in the town said:
It’s become quite popular to use Klopp as an example about patience and time but it’s a complete myth. Their progress was quick and linear. They finished 4th in his first full season and made a CL final in his 2nd. Bearing in mind he didn’t have anywhere near the transfer budget we do.
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This logic makes no sense at all. United have to compete with arguably 2 of the greatest club sides ever, a stronger PL than ever and fix a club with a huge identity crisis. Klopp had a far easier job fixing Liverpools mess than ETH will have fixing ours. Internal and external factors are hugely different.

This is the same sort of logic that made people believe that Ole getting 2nd place was anything but an anomaly of chance and good luck.

Leicester won the league 6 years ago. That wasn't because they were astoundingly good and nothing else mattered.

Have arbitrary goals based on cherry picking pointless examples from a different time and place makes no sense at all.
 
Jeppers7 said:
By the second half of the season I expect us to regularly be better than the majority of the teams we play. That will be enough for me. Spending three years under Ole, plus time under Jose, playing worse football than every other team in the league....I can’t cope with anymore. I want to see players starting to look effective and the Caf to have no reason to blame all the players, which frankly is ridiculous.
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This would be nice wouldn't it. It would be nice if our fans could have even an ounce of self awareness to be able to judge a performance on more than goals for and against. As the Ole adventure should have laid bare, you can only outperform your base line for so long before your shit foundations crumble. You can't expect to win anything if you are routinely outplayed by 7/10 teams you play.
 
Top 4, developing a style of play and possibly a trophy. All of that is contingent on him actually receiving suitable backing in the transfer market though, and we require quite a bit.
 
tomaldinho1 said:
Season 1. Enjoyable football, players working hard and seeing the tactics translating from the training ground into the pitch. Getting rid of the layabouts.
Season 2. Comfortably top 4, starting to become a serious force, some select signings on key areas.
Season 3. Compete for PL and CL. Don’t have to win but be up there/close.
Season 4. Quadruple or sack…
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I agree with S1-3.
But isn't it a big jump from S3 to S4, going from 'get close to first place in the league' to 'win everything'?

What estimate did Ralf R give, for winning the league? Did he say 3 years?
 
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