Sacking Ten Hag and hiring Gareth Southgate would be single handedly the worst decision that Manchester United have made in the last decade

I made this comment about transfers on another video, but I'll make it here now because I can see some of the same tropes being wheeled out again and again: The Athletic has been telling us for years about how bad United’s scouting, recruitment and selling structures are. United have made consistently bad transfer decisions for over a decade. We know their scouting is bad. We know they’re terrible at negotiation. They overpay on transfer fees. They pay stupid wages which makes it impossible to sell. They renew contracts rather than let them expire because it looks better “on the books”. They can’t even sell their best youth players for more than a pittance. Why is it that, when Ten Hag joins, this is suddenly a "Ten Hag problem"? This is obvious if we look at the players United have actually signed since Ten Hag joined. Season 1: Antony, Casemiro, Martinez, Malacia, Eriksen, Weghorst, Sabitzer, Dubravka, Butland Season 2: Hojlund, Mount, Onana, Evans, Amrabat, Bayindir, Reguilon That's 16 players. 6 of them - Weghorst, Sabitzer, Dubravka, Amrabat, Butland, Reguilon - have been stop-gap loan signings to provide cover for injuries or, in some cases, a complete lack of players in that position. No manager for a team aspiring for Champions League football should have to rely on these kinds of loans, but Ten Hag has had to make do. 2 of them - Eriksen and Evans - were free transfers. Eriksen added a bunch of control to United's play in Ten Hag's first season, but his fitness has trailed off this season - not surprising given he had a fucking heart attack. Evans was clearly meant to be a back up this season, but repeated injuries in defence meant he's played far more than anyone expected - nobody thought he was going to be first choice. Both of them have been decent free pickups. Malacia was a cheap signing to provide competition for Luke Shaw. After a few games where Malacia kept Shaw out of the side, Shaw upped his game and played the rest of Ten Hag's first season, so he clearly did his job. He's been injured all of season 2 including having apparently multiple surgeries. Bayindir was a £5m backup keeper. That leaves 6 players who we might call "serious" signings. Martinez was outstanding last season, and absolutely critical to how Ten Hag wanted to play. He lets United play a high line, he provides control and a ball-playing ability at levels above our other centre backs, not to mention his leadership and organisational skills. United have really felt his loss this season, probably more than any other player. Good signing. Onana had a few shaky moments early on, but has become a really reliable player for United, and has made a bunch of crucial saves. Good signing. Hojlund wasn't Ten Hag's first choice - it was well-publicised that he wanted Harry Kane. Nevertheless, despite arriving injured and starting slowly, he's now an important player for United. Pricey, but a good signing. Casemiro - again, not a Ten Hag choice, who clearly wanted de Jong. United spent the summer trying to get de Jong and completely failed. Casemiro was a panic signing after the season started, so obviously United paid a lot of money for him. He started slowly, but for most of last season he was very good. He's been poor this season, but again he clearly wasn't the profile of player Ten Hag was after - a press-resistant technical midfielder who can dribble, break lines, cover passing lanes, and dictate play from deep. Mixed signing. Mount played a handful of minutes before getting injured for the rest of the season so far (with him slowly coming back in the last few games). No fairer to blame Ten Hag for this than it is to blame Arteta for Timber's injury. Can't judge this signing. Antony is the obvious outlier here. He was obviously a player Ten Hag knew from Ajax, and thought would fit his system at United. He was underwhelming in his first season, and has been poor in his second season (including long periods out and obvious distractions due to his legal issues). United clearly overpaid for him. But would he be the stick to beat Ten Hag with if United had signed him at the start of the summer when he would have cost around £35m, instead of at the last minute when Ajax could name their price (and United had no time to go for an alternative)? Is Ten Hag responsible for United's inability to make a simple transfer without tripling the price? Everything we've learned over the last decade suggests it's a club problem, not a manager problem. Poor signing, but not as poor as the price would make out. So where does that leave us? Does that list genuinely suggest "Ten Hag's Recruitment" has been so bad? I think it's been unlucky - the Martinez injures have been brutal for how United play (remember, Liverpool finished 5th the season Van Dijk was injured), the Mount and Malacia injuries were staggeringly unlucky, Hojlund arriving injured giving him a slow start, the club fucking up Antony's transfer and failing to get de Jong, and over half the signings being loans or frees. But to say Ten Hag is the architect of these misfortunes seems really short-sighted. EDIT: I was reminded in the comments that I forgot about Butland, another loanee, and that Bayindir was actually a permanent signing. I've updated the post to reflect this.

the more is listen to Adam the worse it gets.

No please fire ANOTHER manager. That will solve everything! We will magically start winning league titles again as soon as we fire another manager.

Adam saying he doesn’t agree with missing key players as a reason for poor form because city haven’t had a left back in years is so unbelievably ridiculous. City have missed Rodri for 4 games this year and LOST all 4, not drew, LOST. So ETH can’t rely on Martinez in his second season when he’s only had so many opportunities to bring in the players he relies on but pep in his 8th season is totally reliant on a single player. There’s so many other things Adam says but I’d be here all day, if I knew so little about what I was talking about in my job I wouldn’t last a week. The fact this guys a top journo tells you everything. Don’t get confused about this. As much as the athletic is supposed to be the “smart” football journos, they are still journos. Criticising united gets views and their top journalists is a guy who’s built a career on that. If united ever became good beyond question Adam would be out of a job.

We are tired of this media nonsense

Adam crafton football knowledge is really subpar.

Adam Crafton's Ten Hag out agenda is so obvious. That's not necessarily wrong, but saying "should your system really be so dependent on one player?" is bonkers. We have 3 quick defenders who can play CB and all of them are injured so we can't push up the pitch. What is he supposed to do then? If arteta had both gabriel and saliba injured last season i'm not sure they would have been able to play the same way. Don't get me wrong, Erik Ten Hag is not the right man for the job, but assigning all of the blame to him and absolving these consistently shit players of any responsibility is pure bias. Get rid of ten hag sure, but that only prolongs the tenure of players like marcus rashford and bruno fernandes at the club. Get rid of all of our current "big players", then the manager.

The ETH criticism is getting old, especially when you don’t paint the entire picture.

If these fools can make it as professional football journalists, it gives me all confidence I need to succeed at anything in life.

7:34 comparing ten hags 2nd season with arteta’s 6th and pep’s 8th is just ridiculous. pep and arteta can deal with injuries MUCH better than EtH because they’ve had time to model the squad into one that fits their playing style. In the time pep has been at city, utd has had 4 managers. How the hell is united supposed to have a coherent squad when the managers always get sacked before they have a chance to build anything? It’s impossible to take crafton seriously after making such a stupid argument.

Man City have not had a left-back for 5 or 6 years did you really say that who did they sell to Arsenal last season?

Non of your assessments are fair... no manager will be able to implement any style of play with the number of injuries this season and things he's had to deal with with player power.

Has Ten Hag pissed off Adam Crafton in a presser or something? Man hates him.

After 10 minutes of listening these guys confirm my belief ten haag should stay. Their points are ridiculous "Man City hasn't had a left back in years" That is because they don't want one to play, we however, do. And we have been without a left back almost all season.

I have made several polls and most United fans want to give him a another chance but the media is all about selling the "sacking" story

Are you lads all looking for a gig on Talksport radio ?

Tired of watching Adam crafton on every fucking United video. Please get proper United journalists like Carl or Laurie

As a top Manchester Red fan, i fully support Ten Hags continued management.

Was Arteta steadily and gradually improving after their FA Cup winning season following a poor start? How can we measure incremental progress?

First of all lads, lets stop this. Erik and the club seem certain that he is staying for the next season. Secondly, how are you actually surprised with the amount of shots and the lack of control? The injury list is insane, not to say united is the only club with this issue, but look at the starting 11. Firing another manager after two seasons is idiotic and means they would make the same mistake once again. The entire sporting side of the club is currently being checked, new hires are coming in and a new plan is set in place. Erik leaving means having to look for a new manager and who would that be? United would also be competing with Liverpool, Bayern, Barca and many more. Has the Athletic really sunk this low? To call this journalism is poor, its chatting shit because its popular to talk about. Stop it

Again sloppy reporting from the Athletic. City drop points in 5 straight games without Rodri (but one player can't make a difference?). United are playing 15 yards deeper than they want to so obviously the midfield is overly stressed. The defense is playing 3 non-starters but ignore that, one striker who is new to the league and is 21 but ignore that. Lazy, unbalanced reporting again.

Sensible review and comments Mark....only for Mark to totally ignore & miss the obvious from what was said...... Casmeiro & Eriksson are burnt out from last year, Mounts been injured & rarely been available, no money to sign players so we took a loan.....

Remove this Adam from your channel, he talks scrap

‘Ten hags record stacks up against potter and Southgate?’ They’ve won nothing and Southgate’s only club job he got boro relegated

Yes! they should stick with ETH, we know what he did last year with a Squad that stayed fit? and we can see how Arsenal are after sticking with Arteta, and his bad period? maybe standing by the Man you chose 18mts ago, is the right thing to do? we know it took Sir Alex many years to get his team right, with Martinez and Varane playing last year, we didn't have that shot count against us

Don't understand the point on injuries. Am I wrong or did Man City not lose all their games when Rodri was out injured? One player, depending on their importance, can make all the difference.

Ten Hag won more games (63) than Jurgen Klopp(62) since August 2022 when he joined United Ten Hag has better record coping with injuries than Klopp, Arteta, Ange, Emery, Howe Ten Hag won our first trophy in 6 years Ten Hag adapted to 26 back 4 combinations in 31 games Ten Hag set United to be top-3 in the league for shots after high turnovers Ten Hag is on course to get to 3rd cup final in 2 season Ten Hag has highest post-SAF win rate both overall (60.4%) and at Old Trafford (70%) Ten Hag handled Ronaldo, Sancho, 2 abuse scandals, club sale, worst every injury crisis, crazy hate from media calling out even how he speaks, absolutely inept staff at the club making him manage scouting, transfers, failing him medically (remember why Reguillon left?) and didn't break (like a f*ng hysterical de Zerbi), lose temper, composure etc Trust me, Hag walks into ANY team in the world right now, maybe except city. Bayern and Barca would clash harder than 8-2 if he was on the market. Comparing him to Arteta is a joke. You forgot how Arsenal were a laughing stock for 3 years? Arteta didn't have 10% of what Hag faced. Ange is a fraud, he is already found out but shielded by his first 10 games. Last season Klopp after 30 games was 8th on 47 points. 8 years into the project! EIGHT YEARS! Get off him NOW!

Adam Crafton lost me when he said Mount can’t get on the pitch when he’s fit. Such sentences betray his hidden agenda. I except that from espn not the athletic

Yes they should. 1) Let's get it out of the way in terms of points I'll make. The injuries. We cant get a consistency in the patterns of play (which are more relevant than other teams cause we play a transitional few touches to advance type game). We havent had our best and technical backline which helps us play in the opponent's half and keep possession. The latter is why we have this ping pong game. 2) You see how when it comes off it look soooo sensational. Just look at the Mainoo goal build up. We have that understanding, we just now need the techies that will help us slow down and rotate possession when we need to (we have the lead). Return of Shaw, Martinez, fit Mount, fit Varane. 3) I will criticise him on his lack of pragmatic approach when shit isnt going well. Not dropping big players when they're not playing well to shake some accountability into them. 4) The Youth Development is exciting (we have the u18s coming in the next 5 seasons). They will fight for the badge, they're so promising and so is our future. INEOS will put structures around him to build on last season since he couldn't this season. EtH has made mistakes but theres a lot more working against him than for him.

Cut out Adam’s part and maybe it becomes an intelligent, unbiased discussion.

Athletic pls get these debates more balanced.

This whole pod has completely ignored the fact the eth has had the most injuries in the league especially for main players how can you ask him to play a certain way or change things when we haven't had a settled team for the whole season. The agenda is clear here

Thought I was the only one listening to this that was astounded at how much rubbish was being spouted. The revisionism over Arteta’s early record was it for me, total nonsense.

Please bin off crafton and get a proper utd journalist he's terrible clearly doest understand what he's talking about

So glad that people are seeing through this facade. I’ve shared numerous times that Adam Crafton should be removed from commenting about United. It seems when it comes to dispersing negativity, that’s when he gets wheeled out. The assessments are subpar and agenda driven. We may be fans of the club, but we aren’t stupid.

Ten Hag in.

It's ridiculous to keep firing managers, some players need to go and a new squad needs to be built. Rashford has to go, and Bruno probably as well.

I think you're forgetting that when Rodri doesn't play, city lose. Vvd injured most of the season, Liverpool are rubbish (remember all the Klopp out calls last season?) & Saliba injured, Arsenal crumble. United are miles behind those teams, 6th in the league is actually quite the achievement considering how many injuries they've had.

Yes, injuries have been a killer this season, last season we did well. If we had a fully fit squad all season and we were 7th and playing like this, I’d say ok maybe a new manager. He needs one more season for me

Give Ten Hag a lifetime contract!

Give him more time

The timing/price/procedure of buying Amrabat has nothing to do with Ten Hag. Thats the incompetence of the club

wait wait wait, Was Arteta really that great with the previous seasons ? (except the last one) No shit, you said "you can see how it somehow was clicking", no you don't, you don't do that, none of us saw what he was doing, ppl were delusional to believe in him then, thankfully he's learnt from it, but when it wasn't working it was shambolic, akin to how united are. This is absolute garbage journalism. Tell me one occasion where ppl though Arsenal were clicking before these 2 seasons.

Put a FAST CB to push the defence up higher and close the gap to midfield + add a much more mobile DM to replace Casimero and cover behind the high press. Tactically, those two improvements would fix a lot of the reason why United don’t have more control in games. For once I wish United would fix the squad to fit the system, rather than starting over with a whole new system. It’s so clear how a few player changes could make this entire way of play work, and if it does, you’ll have some of the most exciting football in Europe - with some of the best young talents in years. See it through 💪

Crafton talking guff about the FA Cup performance. Liverpool had a couple of dominant first half minutes and then the 2nd half of normal time, but United edged that game on balance. Conversely they're being too generous to ETH overall: whether it's coaching or miscalculation around personnel that hasn't bene rectified, or inability to produce a hybrid system that offers more cover when team breaking forward (perhaps by coaching players to work more smartly rather than needing numbers to try and penetrate defences), ETH has desperately underperformed since Mach of last year, the odd game aside. As for the finances, getting rid of just one of the players that persistently holds the team's style back would pay for letting ETH go And bringing in new coach...

These guys are talking crap, Arteta finished 8th in his 2nd season, and all the Arsenal fans were calling for his head. United want 10hag to be given longer. Other fans want him out, so they can laugh when we get Shitegate to replace him.

Crafton saying that emery has charisma is the funniest thing of this pod 😂

I usually like The Atheletic, but this was a horrible take throughout. Adam’s right about United not having that threat when Garnacho goes off, but to say that Amad should go on after he scored in the FA CUP is ignorant. When Amad plays, he’s not as much of a threat as Garnacho. He’s prone to lose in physical battle and plays safe, like passing back to defenders. He needs to settle more into the team and get used to the prem. The takes they had on this video seemed really lazy overall

For sometime I thought the athletic talks sense 🤣🤣 but not anymore I take my words back

Yes, Keep Ten Hag, but get rid of those players who have been failing for years. This is Rashford's 6th manager, Mctominay's 5th, Bruno's 4th, Shaw's 5th, Bissaka's 3rd, Maguire's 4th...and so it goes on. Rangnick was right, this squad needs open heart surgery. The young players...Mainoo, Garnacho, Hojlund, Kambwala, and even Amad, are the future. The past needs selling.....thia summer.

What does danny Murphy know about football, was a bang average player not good enough for a crap Liverpool side yet he’s the oracle on what it takes to win. Nah mate guy is a fool

100%. Yes he deserves criticism (style of play through out the team my main issue and transfers, even though that's not just on him, its the people around him he probs cant trust) from time to time but look at everything he's had to deal with in his almost 2 years of managing UTD. Taking over the worst UTD team ever in PL history, Ronaldo issue, Greenwood, Maguire (think he got arrested on holiday, not sure?), Sancho, Injuries, a year long Glazer sale process hanging over the club. Lets give him time with a steady ship, a proper structure around him and trust the process. I can see and hoping to see that he builds a squad around our youth players. Mikel finished 5th, 8th,8th and 5th before really turning into the team they are now, 4 seasons!

Erik Ten Hag Stay. Buy 2 center backs (one that can play both cb and lb so that we won't spend money for buying a lb...gvardiol ish), a defensive midfielder (preferably de jong), and a striker(sesko). And get rid of lindelof, eriksen, amrabat, martial. Sell sancho and greenwood for 120m combined. Sell casemiro and varane to saudis for 70m or 80m combined. Wage bill lowered!!! Get ucl spot in 2024/25 and +80 pts in epl. Sell mctominay in summer 2025 for 50m. Buy another midfielder. Win the epl in 2025/26. Win the ucl in 2026/27. Appreciate Ten Hag. Appreciate INEOS. Done!!!

It took Klopp 3 years to win his 1st trophy at Liverpool. A lot of Arsenal fans wanted Arteta sacked. Sir Alex Ferguson was nearly sacked and took 4 years to win his 1st trophy for United. Ragnick told us all how bad United were and it would take years to get United challenging for PL titles. A new manager will set United back even further.

Can’t replace the manager unless your CEO, Sporting Director and Technical Director is in place.

Love the comments are cooking you lots, very subpar analysis

Yes. Signed fans of every other football club.

a question for the guy talking on 7:30 Should a good boardroom of a great football club not be able to provide options suited to the style of play a manager needs...should they have not given ETH the profile of player he needs for every position...what is your point mate

Crafton said should a team/system be so reliant on 1 player...look at city without rodri

Superb analysis and well balanced

great show! I agree the way we are being set up by Ten Hag has been the same all season leading to end to end chaos and being so open it cant go on, can it? Sad that it's not worked out because I was impressed by his first season.

Adam would Liverpool have taken ten haag before us? Yes

What? Are you honestly saying Arteta would’ve been ok finishing 8th his second season never mind his third season? No he would’ve been sacked so why wouldn’t you give time to ten hag who has already actually proved he can win with a poor team never mind if he actually got more than the 2-4 signings he’s had starting this season instead of the same lazy players who can’t adapt to new tactics under him, rangnick ole or jose

The four past managers have lost their jobs after 2 years, yet its always sack the manager before clearing the players

Bayern and Real Madrid replace their managers any time without a second thought. If a manager don’t deliever, he should be replaced. United won’t get european football next year, likely, and ETH should be dropped.

I searched for The Three stooges and ended up here....

We've beeen playing most of our games with Evans or Lindelöf at LB, Maguire and McTominay that no club was willing to buy for £25m in the summer even though Ten Hag wanted to sell them to buy player who fit him better. Only Onana, Lisandro, Hojlund, Antony and Hojlund are signing that he wanted. Amrabat was a last minute loan because Mainoo got injured. Casemiro, Rashford and Antony have been underperforming. Only Onana, Varane, Dalot, Mainoo, Garnacho and Hojlund have done enough and 3 of them are 21 and under. Lisandro, Shaw, Malacia, Mount, Martial and Amad out for almost the entire season. Onana - Shaw, Lisandro, Varane, Dalot - Mainoo Mount Fernandes - Rashford, Hojlund, Garnacho with: Maguire, Wan-Bissaka, Casemiro, McTominay, Martial and Antony should be good enough for 4th. But not with 8-10 injuries for every game.

As a neutral, I can see the logic behind ten Hag seeing out the season, giving him a chance to show INEOS what he is about, but I can also see the possibility if there are losses to let him go IF there is nothing to play for so INEOS has more time to interview before end of season. Although ten Hag is not my kind of manager for many reasons that the panel outlined, I do think the job has overwhelmed him. Not just because of United's historic expectations but the awful state United is in. Thats a weight that has felled most managers since Sir Alex. but I do actually feel badly for ten Hag, United are an unholy mess from the Ownership on down and have been for years, and what we are seeing now is an accumulation of all the errors, player power, lack of winning mentality and physical fitness. I have never seen the constant weekly drama of gossip, turmoil in one team and the lack of support from the players for the manager is horrendously disrespectful as are the leaks to not just the manager, but to the fans and the club. Name one other club that operates like this and is successful. And I agree with the comment about watching United as a neutral as its fascinating as you never know the drama that going to unfold - which is also why the media are reporting on it so keenly.

A very intelligent and calm conversation.. Great stuff

Good talking points but I don't understand why the manager is the one getting blamed for all the mistakes that has been happening in United for over 8 years. Ten Hag has clearly inherited players that aren't good enough, along with making some bad signings. And the injury list is way too long to rule out, I don't think its fair to criticize him for everything that is wrong with United at the moment. Man Utd has been very bad defensively ! Last season we had the most number of clean sheets. This season we have conceded the same number of goals already, plus so many at Old Trafford. That coupled with Rashford's poor form kinda gives you an idea of where United are in the PL table at the moment. We must remember that last season he overachieved. He led us to two finals and a top-four finish in the Premier League. This season, however, he has underachieved. Nothing seems to be working. He deserves at least another season to redeem himself, given the return of some key players from injury, the opportunity for investment in the transfer market by the new owners (Ineos), and the addition of some important figures to the club's management and strategy team.

If nagelsmann is available then yes

Anyone suggesting United keep ETH a minute longer is not United a fan. The football being served up is a fast way to the bottom, if you support that then you do not support the club. The manager is responsible so the only outcome should be him to lose his job.

Absolutely yes . Injuries , change of ownership , player issues . Why athletic is pessimistic over utd all the time ?

More media short-sightedness here. Most of the players that are playing right now are the players that threw Ole under the bus and played horribly under Rangnick. These players aren't good enough to play a controlled, possession style of football. I think this season Ten Hag has leaned into the chaos of absolute counter attacking football. Last season we couldn't score without Rashford, so he's over correcting by throwing every player forward. That combined with having slow defenders who know they'll get out paced on the break so they drop back closer to their own box is leaving a massive space in midfield that teams are able to stroll through. Martinez being out is massive for Ten Hag's system. He's fast enough to make up ground on a break, he has the ability if he's not one of the world's best defenders at making a line breaking pass and he's a natural leader. The media in general, including in this podcast is asking, 'Should a system be so reliant on one or two players?' Look at City's record when Rodri doesn't play! Take Saliba out of Arsenal's back line for the entire season, I'm pretty sure that's why the faltered last season. The Athletic is a fantastic outlet for letting everyone know what a joke Utd are behind the scenes, yet everything this season is on Ten Hag. Do better, guys. Myself and all the Utd fans I've spoken to are fervently in favour of keeping Ten Hag in the job. I'm so sick of this narrative.

Garnacho has been getting taken off because he’s a kid and if he’s not managed then his body will break down. If his body breaks down, Ten Hag gets blamed because he’s been overplayed. Take him off and ten hag gets blamed. Relying on an 18 year old is the mental thing.

Total lack of any perspective in this episode. You cannot have a discussion on Ten Hag's coaching without talking about the availability of players this season, both because of injury and through the squad building. If he chose to play a low-block system in his second year, the Athletic would still be having a podcast on whether the manager was good enough. The system is a deliberate choice, informed by the players available in combination with Ten Hag's philosophy of playing transition football. Conceed low quality shots, exploit space and create chances. Doesn't mean it's sensible, but there should be no confusion.

It’s underestimated how much Rashford’s form (purple patch, or whatever) contributed to last season, in tandem with Casemiro, who in retrospect was a poor value short-term buy, the type that has contributed to United’s FFP issues. I agree the system makes Casemiro look poorer, but there is no doubt he has dropped off, and that Real Madrid rinsed United.

Jose and van gaal were past it when they were at united while moyes and ole(unfortunately) weren't good enough for united. Ten hag is someone who is neither of the above, yes he has something to prove yet but he has the capability to do it as seen in the 1st season and with another major team like ajax. Stick with ten hag

Expected better from Crafton, he sounds like a sky reporter

Biggest difference is character. Character is fate, the Greeks used to say.

The Postecoglu disrespect lol

Martinez is our VVD, our Rodri. Liverpool and Man City results drop off a cliff without them. (Not comparing their abilities, but the way the team performs without them.) Martinez elevates the performances of others around him, and tactically is key to our high defensive line (which drops 10-15 yards without him). It’s chaos because ‘we have no midfield’, but I feel we do have a midfield, it’s the dropped back line behind them that makes it for awful viewing. -In my humble opinion.

Cannot understand why Ten Hag will not use Amad Diallo. He put in a stand-out, match transforming performance against Liverpool in the Cup: - in and out of possession, quality passing, regaining possession, tackling, dribbling, harassing Liverpool players, tracking back… and not least, in nicking the ball off Harvey Elliott running 60 metres and scoring the winning goal. Did Ten Hag watch the same game? Amad is a gem, but Ten Hag just can’t see it. Makes me really question the guy.

Very well said Critchley. This is the best suited way based on our best players ability.

What this video has shown me is anything adam crafton is on or has written im staying far away cus i have never seen an agenda thrive in a man like him and eth out

Mark’s point about, backing up Adam, that Man Utd have this brilliant, exciting way of playing is crap. They don’t have a style. Furthermore they don’t score many goals either. Scored 45 in the league in 31 matches. Then compares this ‘brilliant style of play’ to the boring City Arsenal game and says “if that’s the way to win elite football matches then thank you very much i am not interested. Arsenal play like that twice a season. Outside of the two city matches Arsenal have scored 74 in 29 matches. Edited my post to remove the inaccurate sentence about this being myopic, biased journalism. It isn’t journalism. Not up to the Athletic’s standards. I don’t know what Man Utd’s style is. Don’t score many goals, concede more, don’t manage games and don’t have any discernible patterns of build up. I think Ten Haag just puts 11 bodies on the pitch and tells them to wander around. Apparently that is enough for Mr Critchley to describe it as brilliant. Baffling

United needs to be burnt down and rebuild completely. The way this gave away the FA Cup final last year, the 7-0 at Anfield, the UCL this season, the messy style of playing, the amount of money paid in wages and transfer fees... Ten Hag out!!

It's like they don't want man utd to get better because if we get better they would literally have so much less to talk about and get views on their podcast

Adam is proof that a sports journalist does not equal a sports analyst, because what are these takes? Absolutely ridiculous and agenda driven. Haven’t we all been watching the same games and experiencing the same injuries that have hampered every plan this season? How can you say the system is dependent on “one” player when we’ve had the most injuries this season, the most inconsistent combination of defensive lineups, and played majority of the season without a left back, with the left side being our strongest in terms of ball progression and attacking prowess for years now.

What bollox comparing a Liverpool, City and Arsenal squad that has been built over 5-10 years to Ten Hags second season where he's using players as best he can that don't suit his style. If Ten Hag gets to build a squad then compare him...

100% needs at least another season, particularly with the correct structure around him.

This Adam guy has an amazing job for his talents, not far off ETH. Living off silly sarcy jokes. Please get someone to criticize United who actually follows and understands football.

Unless there is an outstanding manager available, i don't see the appeal of moving on from ETH. I don't think counter attacking works as a model to win the league and have sustainable success, so the current style will probably fail, but at this point, I don't see a better option given the current crop of players and the string of injuries. I am much more interested in the recruitment in the summer given that there should be a longer term, more sustainable view by the Director of Football than the coach.

Constantly going in on the manager. Liverpool played late into all competitions 2 years ago and last season didn't make top 4 and had loads of injuries and what the previous season took out the squad. City don't have a left back because Pep doesn't want one and plays with a extra centre back pushing one into midfield as you know so that's a disingenuous comment. Arsenal lost their best centre back last season and was given as the reason the title bid failed. Manchester United went deep into all competitions last season, hasn't had a left back all soon, some would say their best centre back all season, at some points the starting back four has been out. One striker who arrived injured, Sancho and Anthony issues off the field and we don't get the same level of tolerance from these writers and pundits alike. At the start of the season even though we finished 3rd last season you know nothing about football if you believe they were favourites to finish above City, Arsenal or Liverpool so 4th was the target and with the multiple issues listed to lose 4-5 games more than expected to be in 6th isn't so unimaginable. This club hasn't looked close to a title for over a decade and the wage bill just shows up the Glazers and the old CEO so stop putting this on the current manager. I expect better from the Athletic

Comparing Hag to Postecoglou? Seriously? Are you mad? For 10 good games? And ignore Hag's last season?

A club takeover battle, 2 rappe cases, a striker who refuses to score, a star winger who lives in a different country…. No club infrastructure and the worst injury crisis in modern times…. Cut Hag a bit of slack…

YES YES YES he going to win the lot if he gets time the rest of the club needs ripping up and start again but Ten Haag deserves atleast another 2 years just for progress alone

How would other teams fair with 29 (?) different defensive selections? Mainly due to injury? What manager in the world could get something out of this team? It’s obviously not wholly on the manager. All the comments on here mention most of the issues: transfers, ownership, injuries, personalities in the dressing room, etc. and the manager is one facet of all of this. I’ve had the misfortune of working in a toxic environment and with toxic individuals, it’s amazing how that can effect morale and productivity. That’s isn’t the managers fault necessarily. Long way of saying changing the manager will do sweet FA.

Our def is relegation standard. If it was at even mid table standard we would be in the 4th spot race with Spurs and Villa seeing as we can now find goals. Even with injuries and everything this is shambles, if we haven't got full strength, why play like we do, why take the same risks and the same mistakes we've been seeing since last season. I am UTD fan, and I like Ten Hag, but when the same things never seem to change. Our set pieces have been a joke for how long now?