Yes, it is hindsight. But that's how football is. You make a decision and it either works or it does not, and as a manager you get judged against an outcome. The outcome seemed to be that Wout did not work at all well and Rashford was devastating through the middle. It's not totally unforeseeable. The manager has made more difficult decisions than this to combat specific opposition (Shaw v City springs to mind) so as much as you get immense credit for that, there is the possibility for critique when things don't work.
Erik ten Hag - Manchester United manager
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik (@Rood) and Imran (@Annihilate Now!) discuss United's emphatic 4-1 win over Chelsea at Old Trafford and celebrate Manchester United being back in the Champions League. They also discuss United Women, takeover latest and transfer rumours before previewing the FA Cup Final vs. Manchester City.
One of the most form teams about, I don't get these posts.
Since first 2 games dropping 6 points we have pretty much matched arsenal.
I think he learning ok.
Only way your point could be right in your mind is if he has a 100% win rate
ETH playing strong teams in the cup games will come back and haunt this team. Utd look shattered. Drop points on Sunday, top 4 is going to be a dog fight. Those games against Barcelona might be the final nail in the top 4 coffin.
Winning is a very good habit yes but when you are winning it can also mask areas you need to improve on
I am very very happy with our manager's impact on the team
The point I was making here is against Brentford we conceded early and couldn't seem to wrestle the game back
It happened against Villa and then yesterday against Leeds
It points to the fact that we haven't quite learned our lessons
Yesterday you would expect the manager told them at half time that look we can't start like the first half, but that's exactly how we started.
Had we kept it at a goal down we win the game yesterday
ETH needs to learn to rotate more. Playing strong teams against non premium opposition has cost us
So at home to a relegation fodder, we boot it up because they pressed us high? Ok , thanks.
Yes, at half time in the Leeds game, he told them to buck up but the players didn’t do it. Not too much he can do in that moment but he wanted to make sure the players knew he wasn’t happy and continued his demands into the post match interviews and press conference.
He is playing a long game which is to raise the standards of all the players and the group as a whole so that they eventually play at their maximum all the time. This doesn’t come overnight. Players don’t learn to be fundamentally better overnight. It’s a process of continuous management that will get them there.
Tactics and substitutions and in-game instructions are important but the raising of the overall standard is the key to consistency and, in turn, success.
By next year we’ll be winning those types of games even with three or four key players out.
That is my humble take on this heroic Dutch genius.
Imagine getting dominated by Ecuador and US, two teams consist players that are nowhere near Netherlands team. ETH wouldn't allow that to happen if he's in charge in Netherlands team.
We are trash without his players, so he needs to play them.
Blame is on idiots who burned north of billion and bought Fred, Lindelof, VdB, Maquire, Bailly, Telles and rest of the gang.
Ecuador is good and we were abysmal. The US was clinically dispatched. Van Gaal did not lose a game, neither did he in 2014.
Did England beat the US?
US has a very talented squad. That New Jersey boy, Adams, is really good. We should go after him this summer.
Tyler Adams you mean?
Like I said before his team won the matches and that's what matter in football. However, the argument wasn't about lose, win or draw but whether LVG football style was behind the times. Did he win those matches with the way how LVG wants his team to play his total football? I don't think so. His team was dominated by Ecuador and US, Netherlands had better players than them.
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Again, the idea that Van Gaal wants to play total football all the time is nonsense. He believed he did not have the players to do it, so came up with another plan. Just like in 2014.
He set up not to dominate but to win, just like Ten Hag at United.
You are behind the times with your thinking about this.
How much rotating has Arteta done this season?
You're missing the point again. I specifically mentioned the Ecuador and US games because those teams have worse players than Netherlands. The purpose is to make a point that unlike LVG, ETH set up his team to dominate against those lesser teams that have worse players than his team, including our recent game against Leeds yesterday. Hence why I said ETH would never set up his team to be dominated by Ecuador and US.
FDJ, Timber, Blind and Klaassen were part of ETH's Ajax team, VVD is part of Klopp's team, Ake is part of Pep's team. He had enough players to dominate against Ecuador and US. Yet the reality is he was being dominated by Ecuador and US, hence LVG is behind the times.
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Since the World Cup break we have taken 4 more points than anyone else. Dropping two points might feel rubbish against Leeds but actually Ten Haag has got this team playing competitive good football despite the obvious lack of a striker, two first team midfielders out & a lack of depth in that area. We never thought we’d win the league, and we have to be realistic after our terrible start. Both teams above us have a quality striker (I know Jesus is injured) but he gave Arsenal that confidence boost at the start of the season that they have built on. A couple of trophies and a top 4 finish would be a magnificent platform for next year. I’m not writing off this season but realistically Arsenal are too far ahead. Let’s enjoy the ride and watch this team grow. I hope we can win at least one trophy but three or just beating Barca would be an amazing start.
Tell me, why would games against Barcelona be 'the final nail in top 4 coffin'. What are you basing that on exactly?
What should ETH do ?
Play a second string team every cup competition and so we will never win anything ?
Winning any trophy is very important for the stature of the club, for it's history and for the future of ETH.
You picking a couple games its happened.
Theyve obvs learned, or it be happening every game we play. You are going back half a season to brentford, to say we aint learnt anything, it's real micro scoping nickpicking.
It's football, conceding early or late is going to happen. If it was happening game to game then would get your point but it's not.
Would also like to know what he means too.
Haven't got a clue why losing a 2 legger in Europe meaning less games would be the nail in that coffin when we comfortably in top 4 at the moment, and winning the leg which means more mid week games would be a better situation considering he saying we look knackered.
These kind of posts sound like he and others just cant wait for all the worst to happen. It's downright strange.
If anything it happens less than last season. Also unlike last season every time we concede our heads dont go down and we fight back. Team is still a work in progress and you can't expect all the faults to be remedied in one season.
Before the Leeds game and after 22nd Jan we had played 4 games while Leeds had played only 2 games at the same time, no wonder our players were slow to react at the beginning of both halves. They looked fresher and they played more aggressively and took advantage of the fact that our players will be more tired than them, you can see the difference when Sancho and Pellistri came on and those haven't played as much as our other players.
Or that it's just football these games happen? We have already played 30 over games so far and games where we "couldn't seem to wrestle the game back" simply have been a rarity. So no, it doesn't point to any fact that we haven't learned our lessons. Man City and Liverpool just lost after conceding early in the latest round of games, do they have a lesson to learn about not starting well early too?
Aye I don't get why anyone be doubting Hag.
Either secret agenda as wanted another manager, or not grounded in reality of where they think we should be at the moment.
Or just being miserable and negative the whole time.
Does he do everything perfectly. Of course not, nobody does, but trying to find negative things on purpose or shifting goalposts like - he's just lucky, he's no better than Rangnick, Liverpool and Chelsea are shit so - is just bonkers take on things.
He is right about losing "the battles" as he puts it. Its duels, headers and little tackles that accumulate during a game that determine the outcome of a match.
On a side note "his players" that havent really performed all that well are currently Antony and Weghorst. But he is no better or worse than any other manager in that regard: he is going to stick with his players.
Eriksen did well and Martinez too and Casemiro is a complete success.
On a side note "his players" that havent really performed all that well are currently Antony and Weghorst. But he is no better or worse than any other manager in that regard: he is going to stick with his players.
Eriksen did well and Martinez too and Casemiro is a complete success.
I would argue that his absence against Leeds showed his value as a reliable asset for playing out from the back and maintaining controlled possession.
Yeah.
This.
And I really do not understand the levels of expectation amongst some on here (respectfully, not having a dig at anyone...), but we really, really need to consider what ETH has achieved in six months! We are competitive, resiliant and now players are beginning to understand what is really expected of wearing the Man Utd shirt.
What we are going through only serves to highlight what we always knew... that we need time to rebuild the squad, and get rid of the average. That cannot be achieved in six months.
The Barca game is a showpiece to me, nowt' more than that, because we haven't a squad to cover four competitions, not really. But I commend ETH and the players in giving it a good go. Every player is getting good game time.. I really want to see Bruno rested, and Rashford.. but for me, it's for others to step up. Prove the doubters wrong. Take responsibility. Don't be satisfied with just 'being there'.
It's a great opportunity for some players, we'll see if they really want to be there next season.
I'd give up all cups and Europe for finishing fourth.
I respectfully have to disagree. For all the good he has done since signing he is far more a liability (even in terms of losing possesion). So far I just have to say that the cons a little bit outmuscle the prons. Not saying hes not going to get better and more mature
ETH won’t do that. He has winning mentality and won’t give up any for any game. He did rotate but in a different way, i.e., taking off the players around 65-70 mins. I do agree our squad depth is a big issue now in midfield, but Case will contribute in Barca games.
For people saying Leeds played better than United and for people doubting EtH, After 22nd Jan and before the Leeds game we had played 4 games while Leeds had played only 2 games at the same time, no wonder our players were slow to react at the beginning of both halves. Leeds looked fresher and they played more aggressively and took advantage of the fact that our players will be more tired than them, you can see the difference when Sancho and Pellistri came on and those 2 haven't played as much as our other players, I know this shouldn't be an excuse for a top team like us and also the quality of our bench players isn't that good. Casemiro was wrongly booked and Eriksen was injured by a rash and stupid challenge by an idiot, Sabitzer in his debut start can't do what Casemiro does and let's be honest Fred isn't good enough to start for us.
What a stupid line up.
I like him but he is naive.
I like him but he is naive.
Leeds Utd 0:2 Man Utd
Despite a very important win today, I thought it was a bad game from him.
- He never rotates, then totally overdoes it when he does. No reason to chop and change that much today, especially after not doing so in the second-leg of the Capital One Cup semis. Not a logical way to ration the squad.
- Starting Maguire out of what I can only imagine must be some sense of duty to play him every once in a while, despite him seemingly having decided that Lindelöf was ahead in the pecking order.
- Starting Wout Weghorst again after how poor he's been lately. Just play Rashford through the middle with Garnacho out left. Wout is clearly hampering our chance-creation, which wasn't great to begin with.
- Keeping Weghorst on the pitch after that first half, even playing him as a no. 10 in the last 30 minutes. Inexplicable. (He did do okay there).
- Once again hesitating at least 10 minutes too long to change things when everyone could see things were not going our way.
Good substitution with Martinez on for Malacia, though, and three very important points. But we need to be more creative than we are, our points per game average is just not sustainable until we start creating a lot more chances. A very Ole esque game today, no real structure, no control, no creativity.
- He never rotates, then totally overdoes it when he does. No reason to chop and change that much today, especially after not doing so in the second-leg of the Capital One Cup semis. Not a logical way to ration the squad.
- Starting Maguire out of what I can only imagine must be some sense of duty to play him every once in a while, despite him seemingly having decided that Lindelöf was ahead in the pecking order.
- Starting Wout Weghorst again after how poor he's been lately. Just play Rashford through the middle with Garnacho out left. Wout is clearly hampering our chance-creation, which wasn't great to begin with.
- Keeping Weghorst on the pitch after that first half, even playing him as a no. 10 in the last 30 minutes. Inexplicable. (He did do okay there).
- Once again hesitating at least 10 minutes too long to change things when everyone could see things were not going our way.
Good substitution with Martinez on for Malacia, though, and three very important points. But we need to be more creative than we are, our points per game average is just not sustainable until we start creating a lot more chances. A very Ole esque game today, no real structure, no control, no creativity.
3 points all that matters today. We bare bones. Got the job done in the end at a ground that is a hard place to go to for us.
Not for me. Garnacho is the perfect impact player off the bench. He isn't as effective as a starter.