“The last six years I have eight trophies” - Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag hits back at critics amid sack rumors
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has hit out at critics amid rumors of a possible sacking. The Red Devils have endured a torrid start to the season and are in the bottom half of the Premier League after six gameweeks. As a result, there has been constant speculation about the Dutchman's future.
But while in conversation with Sky Sports, Ten Hag claimed the club were in transition, and boasted that he had won eight trophies over the last six years in management. He said (via Telegraph):
“If you lose your faith, you lose everything. We have to keep going and stick to the plan. For a long period, we are in transition at Man United. From the moment I came in, we knew we had to change. We had to replace some older players. Our choice was to bring young players in and that takes time to get the messages on board, to get a game model on board and to introduce a new culture. That takes time.
"In the meantime, you have to win and I think we have proven in the last two years that we win. I’ve proven in my career that always I will win. The last six years I have eight trophies.”
The Red Devils have won just two of their opening six Premier League matches so far and are 13th in the table. In other competitions, they drew 1-1 to FC Twente in the UEFA Europa League and beat Barnsley 7-0 in the Carabao Cup.
Erik ten Hag not worried about his future at Manchester United
Erik ten Hag also claimed that he was not anxious about a possible sack at Manchester United. He believes that the leadership and owners are on the same page and the strategy is in place. He told Sky Sports:
“I’m not thinking about it, I’m not anxious. We created a togetherness in the summer with the ownership and the leadership. We made this agreement, and we were all behind it. We know the strategy [is to bring in] young players in a transition period. They also know in May in all my last six seasons there were always trophies and that is what we are aiming for.”
Manchester United were linked with Thomas Tuchel, Gareth Southgate, and Graham Potter in the summer. However, they decided to stick with Ten Hag and also extended his deal at Old Trafford.