Manchester United

Manchester United

Premier League • England

Ten Hag restoring faith in Man Utd stars who felt ‘misled’ by Solskjaer, with major issue stopped

Man Utd manager Erik ten Hag

Erik ten Hag is impressing Manchester United players with his no-nonsense approach to team selections, according to a report.

The Red Devils have had a mixed bag of results since their manager took over in May. At the start of the season, two defeats to Brighton and Brentford raised concerns of a lack of progression.

That was until a solid 2-1 win over Liverpool at Old Trafford sparked a run of four wins in a row. The sight of two clean sheets in that run also came as a welcome one.

Ten Hag has not been afraid to make big calls over his team selection. Harry Maguire, the £80million-rated club captain, has lost his place at centre-back to new signing Lisandro Martinez.

Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo has no place in the starting line-up either. Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Antony and Anthony Elanga are impressing up front instead.

And according to the Manchester Evening News, the approach is a breath of fresh air at Old Trafford for some players – especially after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s tenure.

The report claims that some in the Old Trafford dressing room felt ‘misled’ by the Norwegian over their game time.

Previous reports talked of frustration for Donny van de Beek and Edinson Cavani over a lack of minutes, despite promises from Solskjar over their involvement.

Now, though, the ‘decisiveness’ by Ten Hag is leaving no players in the dark over what role they have to play.

And for players who may not be involved as much, there are no gripes because they know where they stand.

The Manchester Evening News adds that Ten Hag has been described by Man Utd sources as ‘unforgiving’ of a lack of effort and commitment.

Ten Hag enjoying life at Man Utd

Ten Hag’s first period in charge of Man Utd has proved both ends of the spectrum of performance levels fans can expect.

The first two defeats to Brighton and Brentford showed how much work the Dutchman has to do to get his side back on track.

And despite the bad press after those results, they will have given Ten Hag serious food for thought.

Indeed, he has used those two defeats to put in a plan of action which has sprung four wins in a row in the Premier League.

Although, the recent Europa League defeat to Real Socidead showed once more that Man Utd will not be a quick fix.

Antony starred on his United debut with a goal in the 3-1 win over Arsenal at Old Trafford, but like his team-mates, they could not make a definitive impact to beat Real Sociedad.

It is that inconsistency which Ten Hag is looking to tackle. Still, his consistency with team selections is clearly a big step forward for the club.

New signings are bedding in well, with Martinez, Antony and Tyrell Malacia impressing. If they continue to put in decent performances, they can help the team overall continue to progress.

Up next is a clash with Sherrif Tiraspol in the Europa League on Thursday.

READ MORE: The last four Manchester United managers’ first transfer window and what happened next