New campaign but much may remain the same for Erik ten Hag

a poor start to the new campaign will quickly repeat a refrain from 12 months ago - pressure on Ten Hag and speculation over his future.

Fri, 16 Aug, 2024 - 07:20

Ian Whittell

A NEW campaign under Erik ten Hag, the manager who likes to remind you that only Pep Guardiola has won more trophies than him over the past two seasons, has started in depressingly familiar pattern for the Dutchman and Manchester United.

As last season’s Premier League campaign limped towards an eventual eighth-placed finish, Ten Hag never missed an opportunity to blame his club’s astonishing injury list for his problems.

That argument lost some weight when long-term injuries suffered by rivals like Manchester City and Liverpool were taken into account but, still, United’s march to the FA Cup final and eventual success over their local rivals City ensured the season ended on a big high.

It also allowed Ten Hag to keep his job, when the smart money was that new owner Jim Ratcliffe would replace him, and march into a close season that has already seen him spend £140 million on four new signings.

But amid personnel upheaval, Ten Hag is not the only constant remaining from last season.

Even before a ball has been kicked in anger, injuries have again reared their head, despite a complete re-structure of the club’s medical department.

Already, before a competitive ball has been kicked in anger, £52 million defender Leny Yoro has been ruled out for three months after foot surgery, key striker Rasmus Hojlund will be missing for six weeks with a hamstring problem and there is no return date for Tyrell Malacia, who missed all of last season.

Most predictable of all, injury-plagued Luke Shaw, out since February until he returned for England briefly in the Euros, has injured a calf and is out until next month.

The odds of the left-back improving on his United career average of 19 league appearances per season look long.

There have been the usual short-term injury issues that a manager might expect - Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof, for example - but, if this is a sign of things to come, it promises to be a depressingly familiar story for United and their supporters this coming season.

Still, the glass-half-full version of events, is that United have had a fruitful window so far, with Bayern pair Matthijs de Ligt and Noussair Mazraoui this week joining Yoro and Bologna forward Joshua Zirkzee at Old Trafford.

And the return of Jadon Sancho, from exile, and Mason Mount, from long-term injuries, expands Ten Hag’s options, even if what has been unsaid publicly is that United would welcome offers for former England winger Sancho.

“We know Mason, he’s a high class player and just bringing his skills in will help,” said Ten Hag. “Last season, he had a very bad season, a very tough season for him because of all injuries and now we are very pleased.

"He had a good pre season and I’m sure from this point on he will contribute to the team if he stays fit, but that counts for every player.”

Again, little wonder that Ten Hag will be doing whatever the Dutch equivalent of touching wood is, whenever player fitness and injuries are mentioned.

Sancho may yet be forced into some sort of action while Hojlund remains sidelined.

Having finally shed themselves of Anthony Martial, who, incredibly, has been at the club for nine largely forgettable years, the Danish youngster is the only orthodox number nine on Ten Hag’s books, at least until new signing Joshua Zirkzee finds his feet.

That will test the manager’s tactical acumen to the full, with a “false nine” role for Bruno Fernandes one option, as is using Sancho or Marcus Rashford as “false” or real number nines.

And the latter, of course, is one of numerous figures at Old Trafford who is about to embark on a pivotal season.

There have been few drop-offs as precipitous as Rashford’s over the past two years in English football. From a career-high 30 goals in 2022-23 to eight, just seven in the Premier League, last season.

It was a nose-dive that cost Rashford his England place and prompted speculation that he would leave United this summer.

The simple fact was that his standing in the game had fallen so much that there would have been no takers for the sort of fee - or player wages - that United and Rashford would have wanted to agree to his departure.

“There are so many suggestions around Man United, around this team,” said Ten Hag of Rashford’s situation and loss of form. “There are so many reasons (why it happened), you can list them. It goes much too far.

"They will be part-individual, but also club, team (related). There are many reasons why a player is performing or not.

“We know the truth. He’s working very good, very hard, very engaged, very ambitious, motivated to make it a good season.”

Most United players could say the same, few fulfilled their maximum potential last season, and a poor start to the new campaign will quickly repeat one other refrain from 12 months ago - pressure on Ten Hag and speculation over his future.