The 2023/24 season for Manchester United has been engulfed in negativity. Be it off the pitch, or on it, there has always been a problem for Erik ten Hag to contend with.
Problems he hasn’t necessarily had the answer to.
Fall-outs with players, a bidding process for the club rumbling on, an endless list of injuries, and finding himself tactically out-thought on countless occasions.
By Dharnish Iqbal
But the one thing Manchester United fans have been demanding for so long is finally on the horizon: new sporting ownership.
What this means for the Dutchman however is that Sir Jim Ratcliffe and co. will be overseeing a complete overhaul of one of the biggest clubs in Europe. With the spotlight firmly on Ten Hag for the remainder of the season.
The former Ajax manager may have four more months left to prove he’s the right man to lead United in to a new era.
When new ownership comes in, there is naturally a new manager appointed that the owners feel fits them – for example, José Mourinho’s first appointment with Abramovich or Todd Boehly sacking Thomas Tuchel.
The excellent work of last season can’t be ignored. Ten Hag lifted the club away from the disastrous Rangnick era, won a trophy, and got United back into the Champions League. This season has been a different story. United have already lost nine times in the league, more than any other team in the top eight.
What will worry Ratcliffe is how easy it has been to exploit Ten Hag’s defensive structure this season and the manager’s refusal to change despite the damning evidence.
Coincidentally, this was a strength of the Dutchman last season. Adapting a style depending on the opponent, as United could be a devastating team in transition against the bigger teams and dominate weaker opposition whilst having more of the ball.
He has continued to use a man-marking system that teams have taken advantage of, easily dragging United players around game after game, to create space.
When United pile forward they’re often caught in transition. Showcased by the embarrassing exit in the Champions League as they conceded 15 goals.
The same issues have been reoccurring and we’re now in February.
Injuries have to be taken into account. Missing Luke Shaw, Lisandro Martínez and Casemiro for large chunks of the season with others coming in and out of the team meant Ten Hag has had to constantly chop and change.
It’s harder for players to develop an understanding on the pitch with the team sheet constantly rotating. Players meant to be eased in have been thrust straight into the first eleven, which explains United needing to get Sofyan Amrabat and Sergio Reguilón in as emergency loans.
During September, United scraped by on five one-goal wins. Ten Hag made it clear the shift in style was because of the players that weren’t available. What we mainly saw vs Sheffield United, Brentford, and Fulham was United opting to constantly go long and direct, completely abandoning any sort of playing style. As a result, United have found it difficult to break down teams that sit deep and consequently, have scored fewer league goals than Luton Town.
Perhaps because of United’s adaptive style last season, there hasn’t been a playing style to fall back on. It’s much more difficult to adapt your structure to be effective in games when the players available keep changing.
Injuries and suspensions occurred towards the back end of last season too, but United found a way to win as confidence was high, with the team used to winning.
It’s gutsy from Ten Hag to hedge his bets on the returning players. He made it abundantly clear what the reason was in his opinion for United underperforming following the December defeat to Nottingham Forest: “The injuries. Also some other issues but mainly the injuries.”
The signs following the return of Casemiro, Shaw and Martínez have been positive, with United unbeaten in three Premier League games (shockingly their longest unbeaten run of the season). A young trio in Alejandro Garnacho, Kobbie Mainoo, and Rasmus Højliund finding form offers hope of a bright future that Ten Hag will hope to be a part of.
However, with Martínez innow jured again, all eyes will be firmly on Ten Hag to see how he deals with his latest injury setback.
United have often followed a good result this season with another bad one, being wildly inconsistent. Ten Hag will hope with most of his players back, United can get into a position where they put a string of results together.
We’ve already seen glimpses of improvement, but whether this continues till the end of the season will ultimately decide the Dutchman’s fate as INEOS take control.
(Images from IMAGO)
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