Although Manchester United’s results in the Premier League have recently improved, manager Erik ten Hag is still under pressure due to increasing problems in the Old Trafford dressing room.
The Dutch military leader must face emerging situations. At that time, he once again had to try to fix some of the Red Devils’ problems before the next match against Everton. There are 4 cases that give Ten Hag a headache.
Raphael Varane
Varane is in decline.
Varane seems to have lost his starting position despite being recognized as one of Man Utd’s excellent centre-backs, especially in the context of the defense facing an injury crisis. Both Harry Maguire and Jonny Evans are preferred despite the former Real Madrid defender being a mainstay in last season’s squad.
The quality of the French player is indisputable. But now, Maguire has begun to turn things around and Evans still proves his value. Not using Varane was a surprise and perhaps a problem. Tactically or in other words, Ten Hag needs to help Varane return so that Man Utd can have the strongest four defenders, instead of patching things up like now.
Marcus Rashford
Rashford is no longer himself.
After a breakout 2022/23 season, Rashford has struggled to live up to expectations so far. Ten Hag has proven that he can bring out the best in the English striker and believes that this player can be reborn. However, Man Utd’s attack is slowing down.
The Red Devils only scored 13 goals in the Premier League after 12 matches. And the responsibility belongs to Ten Hag to help Rashford shoot again in the near future.
Bruno Fernandes
Fernandes must play better.
Ten Hag decided to strip Maguire of the captaincy and replace him with Fernandes. However, Fernandes has not shown the appearance of a leader. Fernandes’ performance with the national team is much better.
Recently, he scored the only goal in the win over Fulham and is trying to find a way to respond to criticism. However, Fernandes’ performance must definitely improve to be worthy of the captain’s armband.
Anthony
Antony played below average.
Man United’s right wing has been a source of pain in the past few years when neither Jadon Sancho, Antony or any other name has been in stable form. The former Ajax player played well in the first season, but is now completely out of shape. He did not have any goals or assists.
This will be considered a blip in Ten Hag’s career if Antony cannot be revived. The Brazilian player reaching the highest level is probably a difficult task for Ten Hag. If he can do it, he will help Man Utd’s attack perform better in the rest of the season.
Tieu Lam | 23:51 November 17, 2023
