According to coach Erik Ten Hag, the failure of Jadon Sancho and Donny Van De Beek was due to not being able to withstand the pressure at Man Utd.
Asked whether the problems that Jadon Sancho and Donny Van De Beek have faced would prevent other players from joining Man Utd, Ten Hag told the BBC on January 7: "It depends on the player and his confidence in his ability. But I can tell you one thing: the Premier League is very tough. The pressure to play for Man Utd is greater than most teams."
According to Ten Hag, if players believe in themselves, Man Utd is the best challenge, and the best club they want to join. He values the personality and playing style of each player.
Ten Hag also believes that Van De Beek's failure is partly due to injuries. When he joined Man Utd in 2022, Van De Beek was no longer the player he coached at Ajax. "A lot of times he couldn't play and then struggled to recover from injuries," Ten Hag added of Van De Beek. "Also, the competition for that position is very high."
Ten Hag in the match Man Utd lost to Nottingham Forest at City Ground on December 30 in round 20 of the Premier League. Photo: Reuters
While working with Ten Hag at Ajax, Van De Beek was one of the most promising central midfielders in Europe. Together, they won a Dutch championship, a Dutch Cup, a Dutch Super Cup, and reached the semi-finals of the 2018-2019 Champions League. However, after joining Man Utd in 2020, Van De Beek was no longer himself. After more than three seasons, the 26-year-old player only played 62 matches and scored two goals for the "Red Devils". On January 1, Man Utd loaned Van De Beek to Frankfurt with a buyout clause for 12 million USD, accepting a loss of 33 million compared to the purchase price.
Sancho has also failed to make his mark since joining Man Utd. From scoring 50 goals and assisting 64 times in 137 games for Dortmund, the 23-year-old winger has scored just 12 goals and assisted six times in 82 games for Man Utd. This season, Sancho has only played three games. He was demoted to the youth team in early September for disobeying Ten Hag.
In addition to Sancho and Van De Beek, many players have also declined under pressure at Man Utd, including Andre Onana, Harry Maguire, Raphael Varane, Casemiro, Mason Mount, Antony and Rasmus Hojlund.
Man Utd will face third-tier Wigan tonight in the FA Cup third round, with the aim of winning, as Ten Hag has not ruled out the possibility of the team winning the title. "Man Utd only have two arenas left this season: the Premier League and the FA Cup," said Ten Hag. "But we still have a lot of goals to strive for."
Ten Hag met Ratcliffe and Dave Brailsford at Man Utd's Carrington headquarters on January 3. This was the first time a major shareholder of the club like Ratcliffe had met with the coaching staff and staff since the Glazers took over. The British billionaire, chairman of the chemical company INEOS, had just bought more than 25% of the shares of the team and the right to run football operations. He brought INEOS sporting director Brailsford to Carrington, and began to strategize how to reform Man Utd.
Asked if the pressure to win the cup was higher for the coach, Ten Hag said: "It's not about me, but through the conversation, I feel very optimistic. They have great personalities, strategies and ideas, which I believe are necessary for the team."
Ratcliffe and Braislford have yet to appoint sporting leaders to the club, such as a sporting director, head of recruitment or chief negotiator. The 72-year-old billionaire has said that changing the club’s strategy would be difficult and would take time.
Thanh Quy (according to BBC )
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