It is still early days for the Erik ten Hag revolution at Manchester United, but already there are signs of progress at the club.
Ten Hag arrived with a huge amount of work to do at United following a miserable, chaotic and shambolic season overseen by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick. He immediately showed he was up for the challenge by leaving Ajax early to get stuck into his work at the club’s Carrington training ground.
Pre-season has gone as well as could be hoped so far, with a 4-0 victory over Liverpool in Bangkok followed by a 4-1 win over Melbourne Victory. In the transfer market, after a slow start, things have begun to click into gear, with Tyrell Malacia , Christian Eriksen and Lisandro Martinez all signed.
Ten Hag gave his first press conference as a United manager back on May 23. During his first engagement with the media he spoke of his plans and hopes for United. Less than two months later the Dutchman has already ticked off some key points. Here Mirror Football takes a look at the progress on his checklist.
Stamping his authority
"The confidence is that I have a good feeling with the people around. I have a good feeling from the meetings,” Ten Hag said in May. “We have a plan and now it's about getting the plan done, to get it into process. To cooperate, to be consistent in our plan, and when we have good people around with the right connection and the right commitment, we will achieve the success we want to."
It is early days, but there are clear signs of progress already on this front. Right from the first training session , Ten Hag made an immediate impression with his determination and intensity. He is demanding and particular about how he wants his players to work and that is already translating onto the pitch, according to Crystal Palace boss Patrick Vieira.
“When you look at the first game they played against Liverpool and the game they played against Melbourne, it looks like the new manager has started to implement the way that the team wants to play," he told the Palace club website ahead of their pre-season friendly on Tuesday. "But you just need to look at the individual talent they have in that team and I think that this year they will be there trying to get a spot for the Champions League or to win the title."
Finding Rangnick conclusion
Back in May, Ten Hag was asked about the elephant in the room: Rangnick, who was initially set to stay on with United as a consultant. "I just said, I am still in the process of analysing to set conclusions,” he replied when asked about Rangnick’s influence.
“I am looking forward to working with these players. The season before, this squad was second in the league, so there is huge potential. I think if we improve, if we can work with them, I think we can get out more than what is now the result from this season."
Just six days after his initial press conference, Rangnick was gone. The consultancy role had been canned . Ten Hag got the clean break he wanted.
Constructing a squad
"What we are now doing is first constructing the staff, constructing the squad and constructing a good plan,” Ten Hag explained in May. “First it's the pre-season plan that we are now working on."
The staff was constructed early on, with Mitchell van der Gaag and Steve McClaren appointed on May 23 – the same day as Ten Hag’s press conference. The squad construction has been more difficult – and remains a work in progress – but there has been movement. Malacia, Eriksen and Martinez are all signings who will improve the United squad; United just need to push on.
Negotiations with Barcelona for Frenkie de Jong remain a serious bone of contention, but with Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha arriving in Catalonia, the expectation is a sale for De Jong might be necessary to balance the books. Meanwhile, the uncertainty around Cristiano Ronaldo remains and will need to be sorted before the Premier League season rolls around on August 7.
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Avoiding commercialism
Ten Hag said on three occasions that he will “draw his own line” during his first press conference. One of those answers came when he was asked about Louis van Gaal calling United a commercial club.
"I draw my own line and I’m convinced that is not the case,” he replied. “I spoke to the directors about it and football is one, two, three these days. Every club these days is commercial. Every club needs it. To be successful you need to do what is necessary, but football is one, two three in this club.”
Ten Hag’s side are currently in the midst of a pre-season tour, so commercialism is a big part of what they have been doing in Thailand and Australia. However, there have been signs of it being scaled back. As Mirror Football have reported , Ten Hag vetoed an idea by MUTV to film some of the players on the set of the popular Australian soap opera, Neighbours, while in Melbourne. United's new boss has insisted that nothing is allowed to get in the way of training and preparation ahead of the new season. Nothing will compromise his vision.
Getting bosses on board
"We had good meetings, good talks and I think we are on the same page,” Ten Hag said in May when asked about support from the club hierarchy. “That is a good platform to start and I am sure, I have confidence in the project, that we have the good people around, the right strategy. And from that point about a good platform, then now we have to start work."
He may be slightly frustrated by the speed of things in the transfer market, but so far football director John Murtough and chief executive Richard Arnold have let Ten Hag take the lead in player identification.
Malacia is a player Ten Hag knew well from the Eredivisie. He saw Eriksen up close last season when he trained with Ajax. And Martinez is a player he signed from Argentina back in 2019 before developing into a top centre-back. He has been given a mandate and he is using it – next he just needs United to land top target De Jong.
Adopting Ajax methods
There have already been plenty of examples of United’s players struggling to replicate training drills Ten Hag has brought with him from Ajax. The 52-year-old’s philosophy is all about fluidity, pass-and-move and versatility. It will take some time for his new players to get up to speed, but they appear to be following his lead so far.
"Maybe you have seen Ajax? And I like that,” Ten Hag said when asked how his United team will play. “But it is always players who dictate the way of play. I have the ideal, I will line up my best team, and I will line up my players like that to get the best out of them. That they can go to the maximum, that they feel comfortable in the role and in the end it's about getting the success together."
Total Football hasn't touched down in Manchester yet. But expect a different style of United to be evident during the 2022/23 season.
