Manchester United coach Erik ten Hag says he will “never” be able to replicate the style of football he oversaw at Ajax with his current crop.
Despite a promising first season under the Dutchman, United’s challenging start to this season continued with Sunday’s emphatic 3-0 defeat to Manchester City, where the result belied their rivals’ dominance.
United have lost five of their first 10 league games this season – their worst start since 1986/87 – with former captain Gary Neville describing the second-half performance as a “shambles” and his pundit Jamie Carragher criticizing what he described as a shortcoming kept recognizable playing style.
Ten Hag, who led Ajax to three Eredivisie titles and a Champions League semi-final in 2018/19, vowed to bring a “proactive, bold, adventurous” style to his performance that is “part of Manchester United’s culture”. arrived at the club.
But he says he now has to be more pragmatic and play “much more directly” than he did at Ajax.
“We will never play the football we played at Ajax here,” he told Viaplay after Sunday’s defeat at Old Trafford.
“I have other players now and that’s not why I came here. The choice of players available to you determines your style of play and that’s why we play differently here than I did at Ajax.
“And that’s what I’m going to have to do because I can’t play like that here. And that’s not at all in Manchester United’s DNA.
“The Ajax style of football is very distinctive and we will play much more direct here. And we have players for that, especially in the frontcourt.”
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Ten Hag must find balance amidst the “chaotic” approach
Analysis by Carl Anka of The Athletic
Ten Hag’s quotes to Viaplay in the Netherlands are similar to those he gave in his first introduction as United manager.
“It’s not about how you want to play, it’s about the players – they decide and dictate the philosophy of how you play,” he said in May 2022.
In the months since, the United manager has tried to build a team that gets the best out of Marcus Rashford and Bruno Fernandes – two players who are “at the forefront” and thrive when running into space.
Marcus Rashford has scored one goal in 10 Premier League games (Getty Images)
Casemiro, Lisandro Martinez, Mason Mount and Andre Onana were also bought under Ten Hag with the aim of improving United’s playing ability in the transition period.
However, injuries, a lack of confidence and a constantly changing starting lineup have seen the team encounter difficulties this season.
During pre-season, the United coach stated that he wanted to make the club the “best transition team in the world” while adopting a style of play different from his 2018-19 and 2021-22 Ajax teams that won the league.
In the Netherlands, Ten Hag was known for his ability to coach teams that were comfortable in possession and pressed well without it.
At United he appears to favor a more chaotic approach that can deliver team results in the short term but risks long-term disruption.
The worrying question for United fans is that it remains unclear whether Ten Hag wants to improve United’s possession style or whether he wants to focus on a direct game that bypasses large parts of the midfield.
The United manager presents the situation as either/or, but in his previous jobs he has shown that a middle ground can be found.
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(Photo: Getty Images)