1
Manchester United supervisor Erik ten Hag has hinted that his facet could endure a gradual begin to the brand new season amidst the problem of reintegrating gamers coming back from worldwide obligation.
United are set to take Manchester Metropolis within the Neighborhood Defend on Saturday earlier than opening their Premier League marketing campaign with a house fixture in opposition to Fulham on Friday, 16 August.
The Pink Devils will meet Metropolis having accomplished their tour throughout the USA, which noticed them play friendlies in opposition to Arsenal, Actual Betis and Liverpool.
Quite a lot of gamers who participated in Euro 2024 and Copa America didn’t journey to the US and solely returned to Carrington final week.
The likes of Joshua Zirkzee, Bruno Fernandes, Kobbie Mainoo, Alejandro Garnacho, Lisandro Martinez, Diogo Dalot and Luke Shaw didn’t journey with the remainder of the group for the pre-season tour.
Forward of the conflict at Wembley vs. Metropolis, Ten Hag spoke to reporters and insisted that United should work on their “sport mannequin” and patterns however admitted that rival groups with fewer worldwide stars may maintain a bonus within the early levels of the marketing campaign.
Ten Hag mentioned, “Yeah, I can see it like this manner as a result of we didn’t have time collectively and we’ve got to work on our sport mannequin and to seek out the patterns. There was a break they usually all performed Euros, Copa America, so that they had been in several groups, with completely different sport fashions and with completely different patterns.”
“Now we’ve got to deliver this collectively and it’s difficult. I’m not the one one and United shouldn’t be the one one who has to take care of this downside. There are additionally groups with much less worldwide gamers; they’ll make a correct pre-season. So they’re in all probability forward of us. We’ve got to take care of it within the coming weeks, whereas avoiding dropping factors.”
The Dutchman mentioned concerning the damage woes at present affecting his facet, “No, I can’t let you know. With a few of them I additionally wouldn’t name it an damage, but it surely’s a part of increase into the season and a precaution as a result of they’d points within the pre-season and within the spring. So it’s a continuing course of with them to construct them up into a brand new season.”
“However I heard the query: how do you handle this sport tomorrow? But in addition even when it’s coming right into a league sport, we aren’t able the place we will threat gamers after which lose them for an extended interval.”
When requested concerning the newest on Zirkzee and whether or not the Netherlands worldwide is able to hit the bottom working at his new membership, Ten Hag replied, “Yeah, we had really solely only one or two group coaching [sessions], the place everybody was there. So yeah, it was a really brief interval. Final week for 4 days he did a person [programme] then he did for 3 days, group classes and now we’re 100 per cent with our group. So it’s a really brief interval to evaluate this.”
“I believe it’s [the same] for each participant who’s coming into a brand new league, into a brand new membership and it takes time. I believe additionally for each participant to enter the Premier League, everyone knows the depth is increased as compared with the leagues the place they’re coming from, however he’s already skilled.”
“He was a participant in Germany, he was a participant in Belgium, he was a participant in Italy. He has already collected loads of good expertise and that may assist him. However nonetheless he has to make a step and we’ve got to assist him and you then see it’s not like, say early days, that you’ve got a correct pre-season with the group and it’s not you went to the Euros so that you needed to prepare on his personal particular person [plan] right here. He and we want time to suit him in and that may take some weeks.”
On his gamers’ match sharpness, Ten Hag acknowledged, “You run a threat when you’ve gotten this method as a result of prime soccer goes to the sting, going over the sting after which gamers get injured. That’s not avoidable and it’s an issue for us, however for each Premier League membership we’ve got seen, I’ve seen the checklist. We’re not primary within the accidents.”
The United boss insisted that United will as soon as once more problem for the Carabao Cup and FA Cup because the group is aggressive.
Ten Hag identified that during the last two seasons, the Reds have demonstrated that they’ll beat any opponent however going ahead, the problem is to be as constant as attainable.
He defined that United need to beat Metropolis within the Neighborhood Defend however the membership shouldn’t be able to take dangers with gamers who usually are not absolutely match and firing as this might imply shedding them for a protracted interval.
Wish to be the primary to listen to breaking Man United information? For rigorously chosen, essential updates, be part of our WhatsApp channel: https://bit.ly/United-Breaking-Information.
