Despite the offensive charm, Ten Hag admitted that he had not yet spoken privately with Ronaldo since news broke that he wanted to leave Old Trafford. Chelsea, Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid and Paris St-Germain have distanced themselves from the moves and Ronaldo has turned down a two-year £ 233m deal with a Saudi club without name as your options begin to fade. “It’s the same state as last week in Bangkok, unchanged,” Ten Hag said.
Ten Hag also said he was still not sure when Ronaldo will rejoin the squad. United, who will play Crystal Palace in Melbourne on Tuesday, will return home after their last touring match against Aston Villa in Perth on Saturday, but the coach admitted he was not sure when or if Ronaldo would return to Manchester. next week.
“I can’t tell you,” Ten Hag said. “Not yet.”
No hair dryer is required, but Ten Hag will not be a walk
Another preseason, another coach, another restart and Manchester United fans waiting and praying that finally the club is about to break it. This is the fifth summer in the nine years since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement caused United to fall into a floor the club has been waiting for with a new head coach only, in previous cases, because optimism s ‘fade soon. David Moyes lasted 10 months, everyone except the same man seemed to know that Louis van Gaal would be fired, Jose Mourinho’s reign went down to pure toxicity and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer left just four months after signing a new contract.
There is, therefore, an understandable mistrust in suggesting that the arrival of Erik ten Hag will mark the beginning of a brave new world at a club that conceded more goals than Burnley’s last season. on his way to his worst Premier League campaign and a fifth year in a row without him. a trophy. Whether Ten Hag is successful or not, it is obvious that he will not solve all of United’s problems overnight. But he hasn’t wasted his time showing players and staff who the boss is either, as he seeks to restore some order and pride to the place and doesn’t need to spend much time in his company to recognize the reward he puts in trust. , unity and discipline. values that eroded in the last quarter.
Ten Hag has moved away from the training ground – his happy place – to talk for half an hour on the club’s pre-season tour of Australia and it’s easy to see why he rarely feels the need to rant and rave. It would be wrong to say that he has an air of menace but when he fixes your attention, you dare not turn away. He is polite but without direct, intense apologies and of course it is useless to use 10 words when it is enough. While his English is improving, it’s hard to see it changing.
“I think one of the problems when you want to get results is that you need a team,” he says. “It is organization, cooperation, and discipline is also needed. When there is no discipline around, you won’t find it on the playing field either. With these problems I am quite severe. But I think the same players also depend on being severe with each other because if they want to achieve success they have to be united. Sometimes a correction is needed. “
Ten Hag looked momentarily puzzled when asked if he was the type to throw cups of tea down the dressing room before, in a rare moment of lightness, mocking his own appearance when he suggested he didn’t need the “hair dryer.” “. He felt, however, that he could take a leaf out of Ferguson’s book if and when necessary. “It’s a tool that a coach has,” he added. “Most of the time, it’s going to go the normal way. Sometimes you have to use the whole set of tools you have.”
The challenge that awaits Ten Hag next season is huge. With Tottenham, Chelsea and Arsenal stepping up in an attempt to close the gap between Manchester City and Liverpool, United could be out of work to try to finish in the top four. There is no time to lose and as such there has been no rest for the players. Ten Hag has re-scaled all commercial activities to maximize the time his team can train. Intense and uncompromising double sessions have been mostly on the agenda, as the coach seeks to increase fitness levels and turn United into a team that, above all, can press with cohesion and sustained intensity and take out the best of Jadon’s size. Sancho and Marcus Rashford, talents who stagnated amid last season’s disaster.