ERIK TEN HAG believes the pressure of playing for Manchester United left some of his stars in the treatment room.
The Red Devils suffered an unprecedented number of injuries as they finished eighth in the Premier League, their lowest-ever placing.
The Old Trafford boss felt some players simply could not take the scrutiny and criticism that came with wearing the Manchester United shirt as results suffered.
The result was that any knocks subconsciously felt worse to an individual, who then ruled himself out of a game.
Ten Hag would defend his players during the season as injuries mounted up.
But without revealing what the problem was, he always said that he knew.
His views had echoes of former boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer who on looking back at his tenure felt there were too many ‘snowflakes’ at the club.
United had an unprecedented 64 cases of injury or sickness to players last season.
Ten Hag was forced to field 30 different back four combinations.
However, while there were 11 players missing for the penultimate away trip of the season to Crystal Palace, only three of those reported injured for the FA Cup Final.
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Striker Anthony Martial was one player he regularly had to excuse due to injury, but privately, he felt the player simply did not fancy it.
A source close to Ten Hag said: “He would never call out the players publicly.
“But he did feel that the pressure and criticism they got during the season affected a number of them leading to injuries feeling worse than they were.
“The constant stream of negativity got to everyone, bar himself it seemed.”
It is an issue Ten Hag is determined to address, having been confirmed as United’s manager for next season.
The club were searching for a new manager while conducting a review of the season following United’s FA Cup triumph over Manchester City.
They ended up sticking with Ten Hag and want him to sign a new three-year contract.
The manager has yet to commit to that after feeling he was messed around by new part-shareholder Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who is now in charge of football operations at the club.
Erik ten Hag is no safer now than before FA Cup win
By Neil Custis
After Manchester United announced Erik ten Hag was staying on, they tried to explain why it has taken over two weeks since the Dutchman paraded the FA Cup at Wembley to actually tell him he still had the job.
A thorough review of the season was needed even though Ten Hag said before the Cup final that this had been done.
The club said that they had ‘considered all eventualities’.
In other words ‘which manager would be best for us, and not necessarily the bloke we have got?’.
And the club were also at pains to make it clear how much they admired Ten Hag’s ‘dedication, dignity and professionalism’.
In other words he did not publicly flip his lid at the appalling way he was being treated despite asking Ratcliffe for a public vote of confidence months before the end of the season.
Let us remember Ratcliffe did not even namecheck Ten Hag in his ‘congratulations message’ after the FA Cup was won, despite the fact it was all down to him and the way he outthought Pep Guardiola on the day.
Read the full column from Neil Custis on Manchester United.
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