Erik ten Hag has told his Manchester United players they are “in the wrong place” if they do not have the hunger to succeed.
Ten Hag is still fuming over United's woeful 2-0 defeat at Newcastle on Sunday, which saw them slip out of the top four. The Dutchman knows missing out on Champions League qualification would be a major blow to United, who are currently fifth in the table.
Against that backdrop, Ten Hag warned his squad those who fail to meet the standards expected of them under him will be shown the door. Ten Hag, whose United side can go back up to third with victory over Brentford on Wednesday night, said: "Of course you have to match certain standards.
“You have to match certain standards and I know in a season you don't only go up one way, you will have fluctuations. But you have to know why you are where you are and what brings us into that position.
"Sunday was about determination, passion and desire - and I missed that. When they can’t get it, then they're in the wrong place.
"When you have a strong opponent who play above their level - and many teams do against Manchester United - then you get killed. And we did on Sunday.”
Meanwhile, Christian Eriksen looks set to make an early comeback from an ankle injury after Ten Hag revealed the midfielder is back in team training from Tuesday.
The 31-year-old has established himself as a key player since moving to Old Trafford in the summer on a free transfer following a successful short-term stint at Wednesday’s opponents Brentford.
Eriksen made 31 appearances and was a near ever-present before being sidelined by a poor challenge by Andy Carroll in January’s FA Cup fourth-round tie against Reading.
United expected to be without the Denmark international until late April or early May, leading them to make a deadline-day loan move for Bayern Munich midfielder Marcel Sabitzer. But Eriksen has made impressive progress and is shaping up to return to action ahead of schedule.
“Not (available) for (Wednesday) but he’s returning on the pitch,” United boss Ten Hag said. “He’s returning into team training (on Tuesday), so we have to see how quick he can now make the progress.”
