Manchester United

Saturday's 4–0 loss to Brentford exposed the Red Devils for what they are: a club without a plan run by a manager with misplaced tactics.

He was presumably brought in to try to impose an Ajax-style system at United. But Ajax presses and he has a forward line that doesn’t press. Is ten Hag the man to enact that? But ten Hag is two games into his reign, and he’s the first United manager to lose his first two games since John Chapman in 1921. Brentford registered three times as many pressures in the final third as United in Saturday. That is true in terms of infrastructure and backroom staff. Docherty’s first full season ended in relegation, but he was kept on and allowed to continue his rebuild, finishing third in 1976 and then lifting the FA Cup in 1977 before being sacked over his affair with the physio’s wife.

To say that Ten Hag isn't a match for this squad is both true and pointless: nobody is, nobody could be. Can you play Lisandro Martínez, a 5ft 9in centre-back, ...

Half a century ago, United responded to the defeat at Selhurst Park by sacking Frank O’Farrell and George Best. Moving on Ronaldo might be a start, but Ten Hag is even less an author of the chaos than O’Farrell was. This is a major problem for United: De Gea is one of the few United players who has performed consistently in recent years and yet those struggles with the ball at his feet make it very hard for them to switch to a modern style. Perhaps Ten Hag has raised the issue, but the mind boggles at who this United board might come up with as a replacement after thumbing through their ageing directory of high-maintenance bad boys. By comparison, Ederson completed 88.1% and Alisson 87.1%; while it’s true that’s partly because De Gea was encouraged to play more longer balls, it’s also true that one of the reasons United played more longer balls is De Gea. Can you play out from the back with De Gea? De Gea remains, despite Saturday’s howler, an excellent shot-stopper, which is why last season he was named United’s player of the year for the fourth time. Ole Gunnar Solskjær, though, was good at setting up his team to sit deep and play on the break – at least until Cristiano Ronaldo was signed, depriving the forward line of pace and mobility and so destroying the one viable approach United had, and undermining dressing-room morale while he was at it.

The manager punished his team following the 4-0 defeat to Brentford, and said: 'We conceded goals from individual mistakes'

I asked them to play with belief and take responsibility for their performance, and that’s what they didn’t do.” We conceded goals from individual mistakes,” Ten Hag said after the game. He also felt his tactics were not implemented during the game.

EXCLUSIVE: Sportsmail reported how a furious Ten Hag made his team cover the exact distance which Brentford outran United by when the Bees defeated United ...

The team has to take the responsibility. How are we allowing ourselves to be put in a position like that? 'Playing in a high level football match adds significantly to that bucket and adding another day of running on the day after - there’s a reason it was a scheduled rest day - can lead to that overflow and potential injury risk. How are we putting ourselves in that position? And he's looking around and saying "not for me." They wouldn't be doing that!' United faces fierce rival Liverpool next on Monday, August 22 at Old Trafford and Jurgen Klopp's side beat United 5-0 there last season. 'He's probably sitting there thinking "I've been sold a dummy here. I feel really sorry for the fans. 'Activity adds water to the bucket whereas rest & recovery removes it. The 'red zone' is essentially that state of high fatigue & raised injury risk. He's coming expected new signings.

Erik ten Hag cancelled a scheduled day off for his Manchester United squad and held an extra training session after their humiliation at the hands of ...

That is what we didn't do." The team has to take responsibility. We need higher standards than that, that's clear," the 52-year-old told beIN Sports after the game.

SportsBrief.com News ☆ It has now emerged that Erik ten Hag ordered Manchester United players to train on a day they were meant to rest after the ...

The football world is still reeling from shock after Manchester United were humbled by Brentford 4-0 on Saturday evening. - Manchester United head coach Erik ten hag reportedly ordered his players to train yesterday in the aftermath of their embarrassing defeat to Brentford Erik ten Hag Orders Manchester United Players to Train on Their Off Day After Brentford Humiliation

Cristiano Ronaldo wants to leave Manchester United for Champions League football; Manchester United insist that the 37-year-old is not for sale and there is ...

"I think that would be something that would be a start. "There's a bigger thing for me also because I want his Man Utd career to end well. He's got all the experience in the world. He's been the greatest player in the world along with Lionel Messi for the last 10 years. Manchester United's official response is that the Portugal international is not for sale. Ten Hag wants a centre-forward and a midfielder in this window.

Brentford, who only ended a 74-year absence from English footballs top flight with promotion to the Premier League in August 2021, scored four goals inside ...

"The good players we had should have been better. He added: "The manager is responsible as well. In a separate interview with the BBC, the United manager said his team had to be "ready for the battle".

The United squad is arguably even weaker than last season with Paul Pogba, Edinson Cavani, Jesse Lingard, Nemanja Matic and Juan Mata having left for free, ...

Cristiano Ronaldo, meanwhile, is keen to cut short his second spell at Old Trafford but cannot find a Champions League contender willing to pay up for the five-time Ballon d’Or winner. The club’s owners, the American Glazer family, are again at the forefront of the fans’ fury. Erik ten Hag expressed his surprise at seeing Manchester United capitulate to a 4-0 defeat at Brentford that leaves the Red Devils at the bottom of the Premier League for the first time in 30 years.

The 2022-23 season is off to the worst possible start for Manchester United. Despite the arrival of new manager Erik ten Hag, the Red Devils have failed to ...

The answer is 1974 when they finished the 1973-74 season in second-last with 20 league losses to their name. John Chapman was the last to start with such a run of defeats with the Red Devils subsequently relegated from the top-flight in his first season. For the club with the most Premier League titles in history, last is not a place the club will want to stay for long.

A punishing running session, concerns over signings and Ten Hag is becoming more open to Ronaldo leaving the club after Brentford humbling.

Guardiola’s Manchester City team are top of the league, having scored six goals and conceded none to begin their bid to win a third straight Premier League title and fifth in six years under him. United conceded four goals in the space of 25 minutes on Saturday and have now lost seven consecutive Premier League away matches stretching back to last season — their worst run since the 1930s. Eriksen was pounced upon by the Brentford press ahead of their second goal, and central defender Ben Mee said they targeted United’s attempts to play out from the back. Ten Hag said he would have had cause to substitute any of his 11 starting players had the option been available. Sometimes he gets beat in the air but he was aggressive on the floor. Raya said: “That was the game plan today — kicking it long, to utilise Ivan’s strengths in the air. Ten Hag, meanwhile, initially wanted United to dig in and keep one of the game’s greatest ever players on their books. Rashford’s contract at Old Trafford runs out at the end of this season, although United have an option to extend it a further year. United have been linked with Espanyol’s Raul de Tomas, who has scored 45 goals in 89 appearances for the Barcelona club. Ten Hag also made his feelings clear to his players during several meetings at Carrington following the running session. We enforce the message that we need to do it. It was not until the following day that Ten Hag settled on club captain Harry Maguire, rather than 2018 World Cup winner Raphael Varane, as the partner for Lisandro Martinez, another newcomer.

Manchester United deny reports regarding Cristiano Ronaldo's future at the club. On Saturday evening, Sky Sports ran a report suggesting United wanted to ...

Recent reports suggest both Inter and Milan turned down the opportunity to sign Ronaldo this summer. Ronaldo is expected to lead the line against Liverpool in United’s next game. The report adds that Ronaldo is expected to remain at Old Trafford this summer, despite asking the club to be sold this summer.