Alan Shearer was right about Man Utd and Erik ten Hag knows it deep down

Erik ten Hag’s perfect end to the 2023/24 season came true on Saturday afternoon, though it has been a far from perfect season for Manchester United.

An eighth place finish in the Premier League, with a goal difference of -1, told the story of what has been a wretched campaign for the club.

Ten Hag has repeatedly pointed to the injury problems he has faced over the course of the season for the team’s lack of progress, though this defence does not account for what has been too many below-par performances from his group of players.

The Dutchman has too often been let down by those in red taking to the pitch, which was once again apparent earlier this month during a dismal 4-0 defeat at Crystal Palace.

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Yet Ten Hag believes the media have been too critical of his players – a stance he doubled down on when speaking after United’s FA Cup final win. Asked again if he felt the first-team squad have been unfairly criticised, the 54-year-old responded: “I think so. The team, me as well, it was not right.”

Alan Shearer then took a moment to rightfully interject and query this claim at face value, stating: “The only thing I would say to that is that you have had a team out there today who have shown a great attitude, who’ve shown great ability, who have won every single tackle.

“That hasn’t always been the case this season though, has it? So you do understand why we do criticise sometimes. If you had that every single week, you would not have finished eighth. Today was unbelievable.”

Such an assessment of United was a measure and perfectly reasonable response from the all-time Premier League top scorer, who correctly pointed out the Red Devils have too often gone missing when it matters most in matches.

This unfortunate trend may well have cost Ten Hag his job, who may well be thinking how things could have panned out differently had he been able to rely on consistent players each week as manager. Bruno Fernandes, Kobbie Mainoo and Diogo Dalot have been three examples of individuals who have risen to the challenge of what has been a testing campaign, but the same cannot be said for other members of the squad.

It remains to be seen whether or not a new manager is able to convert United into a team capable of competing for English top-flight glory, with the last two years proving the hot-and-cold nature of the current crop at Old Trafford.

Ten Hag has stayed true to his players when defending them from criticism, but he will know deep down that such comments have more often than not been justified.