Erik ten Hag primed to end false dawns at Manchester United

LONDON – After Erik ten Hag’s first season in charge delivered an upturn in fortunes for Manchester United, there is a genuine sense of optimism around England’s most successful club for the first time in a decade.

Since United last won the English Premier League title under Alex Ferguson in 2013, David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer have all failed to revive former glories – but ten Hag appears to be making progress.

He took charge of a United side who had collected their lowest-ever Premier League points tally (58) in the 2021-22 season and were in a five-year trophy drought.

The former Ajax Amsterdam manager has built a team – centred around big personalities like Bruno Fernandes, Lisandro Martinez and Casemiro – who are direct in attack and work tirelessly off the ball.

The turnaround has been remarkable, with a top-four finish in the Premier League, the League Cup trophy and

a place in the FA Cup final

to show for last season.

There were serious blips, however, with heavy defeats at Liverpool, Brentford, Manchester City and Sevilla, and weaknesses exposed by those capitulations have been addressed during the transfer window.

England’s Mason Mount

has been drafted in

to give United more options in midfield, while goalkeeper Andre Onana is a strong replacement for the increasingly error-prone David de Gea. United’s search for a striker has also borne fruit with the

signing of young Dane Rasmus Hojlund

from Atalanta.

“The difference is, with reference to last year, now we have built the foundation with this squad. So (we built) the squad, the way of play, and now we have to find the right players to fit in and to raise the bar,” said ten Hag.

United have done well to tie striker Marcus Rashford down to a long-term contract, after a stellar campaign in which he scored 30 goals across all competitions.

In an interview with former United defender Gary Neville on his Overlap broadcast, Rashford – United’s Player of the Year and Players’ Player of the Year – also said he believes

he could hit 40 goals

if he can stay fit in the forthcoming season.

“Before last season, I always said let’s get to 20 – for a winger a good benchmark. But this season, I’ve hit 30. So we have to try and push it now and go above and beyond,” he added.

“Towards the end of the season, I was struggling with a few injuries, and I probably wasn’t quite at it – that’s when the goals started to dry up a little bit.

“If I can keep that side of it under control, I feel like I can go on and get 35 or 40.”

However, despite cause for cheer on the pitch, the club’s protracted takeover talks have cast a long shadow over the season.

United’s US owners in November announced

that they were considering selling the club

but, nearly nine months later, a deal appears no closer – with British media reporting that takeover talks have paused in recent weeks.

A change at the helm, especially in the middle of the season, may have damaging consequences, as evidenced by Chelsea’s dire campaign under new ownership.

In ten Hag, however, United have a manager who has proved to be adept at handling off-field distractions, earning praise for the tact he displayed in dealing with Cristiano Ronaldo’s disciplinary issues in 2022.

He has also shown a readiness to make tough decisions,

stripping defender Harry Maguire of the team captaincy

and consigning Rashford to the bench in a 1-0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers in December for disciplinary reasons.

If ten Hag can stop the uncertainty over the club’s ownership from spilling over into his dressing room, United have reason to believe they can challenge seriously to win the Premier League and end the recent dominance of City.

REUTERS