Manchester United
Premier League • England
Ten Hag backed to STAY, as Man Utd boss’ ally names only coach who could do better job
One of Erik ten Hag’s former assistants has highlighted the manager’s outstanding attention to detail while claiming only one man would be able to inspire a significant change of fortunes at Manchester United.
It appears that Ten Hag has not overseen his last match in charge of Man Utd after all, despite the club going winless in their last five games before the international break. Pre-planned discussions were held among the board this week, but the decision to sack Ten Hag has not been reached.
TEAMtalk sources have stated that Ten Hag has another two games to turn things around, but the familiar concern is who Man Utd could get to replace the Dutchman and improve upon the form he has overseen.
And Ten Hag’s recent assistant, Benni McCarthy, has claimed there is only one manager – who would have to make an unthinkable move in the process – capable of delivering better results in the Old Trafford hotseat.
“People are always looking for answers like replacing the coach,” McCarthy told SuperSport. “Who are you replacing him with? Who else is better than what they have?
“You’re not going to get many managers unless Pep decides to change from Man City to go to United then maybe you might have a change in fortunes, but other than that, mate, I can’t see if there’s better than Ten Hag, man.”
McCarthy, who enjoyed a distinguished playing career with the likes of Porto and Blackburn Rovers, was added to Man Utd’s coaching staff in July 2022 and served until the end of the 2023-24 season, working closely with the club’s attackers.
Ten Hag’s attention to detail revealed
But having seen first-hand just how much attention to detail Ten Hag puts in between matches, South Africa’s all-time record scorer suggested how frustrated the Man Utd manager will be at what keeps going wrong in games.
“The quality that they have, individual players and as a team, as a unit… then come matchday, we just get a massive shock,” McCarthy explained.
“That’s why it’s really hard and I can imagine how frustrating it must be for Erik because he’s probably one of the hardest-working managers I’ve come across.
“His attention to detail, he makes sure that the players don’t fault anything.
“That man goes to sleep at 3 o’clock, 4 o’clock in the morning. 2 o’clock he maybe thinks of something.
“It’s so non-stop. The man works tireless and when you put that amount of work in you expect things to go.”
Ten Hag might not even have lasted this long had he not led Man Utd to winning the FA Cup last season, although TEAMtalk’s understanding is that Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his new team of decision makers would have made a change anyway if they could have found a suitable replacement.
And although it still seems that Ten Hag is clinging on to his job by a thread, McCarthy has sent a reminder – not being the first to do so – about the pressure once faced by the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson.
“Alex Ferguson was on his last life, he was hanging on a string, and he was going to get fired, and then he ended up winning the FA Cup and they decided to keep him and get that progression because he’s won an FA Cup,” McCarthy observed.
“It took, it took, it took and then eventually it just clicked and once they clicked it was over.”
The question on every Man Utd fan’s mind right now is whether it will ever click under Ten Hag, or if a change will be needed to make them competitive in the Premier League again.
Man Utd add another manager to shortlist as Ashworth works on player deals
Reports have suggested that one coach increasingly in contention to replace Ten Hag is Sporting’s Ruben Amorim, who was in negotiations with West Ham earlier this year and was also linked with Liverpool.
But links with Thomas Tuchel are cooling down amid speculation that the former Chelsea and Bayern boss is in talks for an unexpected different job.
For the time being, the more urgent items on Dan Ashworth’s agenda as sporting director seem to be related to player matters.
For example, reports have indicated that Man Utd are close to agreeing terms with one of their better performers from the Ten Hag era over an improved contract.